Odisha cooperative enhances sugarcane price by Rs 420 per tonne

Berhampur: The managing committee of Aska Cooperative Sugar Industries Ltd (ACSIL) in Odisha has increased sugarcane price by Rs 420 to Rs 3,500 per tonne this year, officials said.

The factory will also bear the transportation charge of sugarcane beyond the 10-km distance this time, ACSIL managing director Sushant Kumar Panda said Saturday.

“Considering all aspects, including the financial condition of the factory and the cost factor in sugarcane cultivation, the managing committee has fixed the price of cane at Rs 3,500 per tonne in consulting with the administration,” he said.

Earlier, the Ganjam district sugarcane growers association had demanded that the cane price be fixed at Rs 4,500 per tonne and threatened not to supply sugarcane if the factory authorities did not consider their demand.

“We have appealed to the government to provide an additional input subsidy of Rs 1,000 per tonne to sugarcane growers," said Sameer Pradhan, president of the association.

The factory authorities decided to commence its crushing from January 17 and targeted to crush over 50,000 matric tonne this year.

Last year, the factory had crushed 49,255 tonnes of sugarcane, Panda said.

The industry provided Rs 16.37 crore to farmers to purchase sugarcane last year, and the amount would go up to Rs 18 crore due to the increase in cane price this year, he said.

Panda said the authorities have also decided to procure sugarcane from adjoining Nayagarh and Khurda districts, besides Ganjam, to run the factory for more days.