East of Delhi, the opposite protest: UP’s sugarcane farmers awaiting dues

The farmers’ agitation, till now, has been about Punjab and Haryana, wheat and paddy, and issues over the way forward for minimal assist worth (MSP)-based procurement and agricultural produce market committee mandis.
But there’s one elephant within the room: Sugarcane. It is a crop grown extra in Uttar Pradesh, not offered in mandis and, furthermore, has a state suggested worth (SAP) that’s statutory. Unlike MSP, sugar mills are legally certain to pay it.
Most farmers protesting at Ghazipur on the Delhi-UP border — as towards these tenting at Singhu and Tikri bordering Haryana — are sugarcane growers. But not withstanding the authorized requirement for mills to pay SAP inside 14 days of cane supply, many haven’t obtained cash even for the crop they equipped within the 2019-20 sugar season (October-September). And the Yogi Adityanath-led UP authorities is but to announce the present season’s SAP, regardless of mills enterprise crushing operations since end-October.
Rakesh Tomar, a one-acre farmer from Kasimpur Kheri in Baraut tehsil of western UP’s Baghpat district, equipped 15 parchis (cane indents, every representing a buffalo buggi cartload of 18 quintals) to the Ramala cooperative sugar mill that crushed until June 2 within the 2019-20 season. He nonetheless hasn’t acquired cost for 4 parchis, which, finally season’s SAP of Rs 325 per quintal for early-maturing cane varieties, is price Rs 23,400. This, at the same time as he has equipped one other 6 parchis thus far within the new season because the begin of crushing on October 28.
Anuj Kalkhande has come to Ghazipur after delivering a buggi of 20.05 quintals (web weight) to the Upper Doab Sugar Mill at Shamli on January 3. Last season, this 7-acre grower from Banat village of Shamli district and tehsil equipped 2,400 quintals to the mill that ran until June 14. “We have, however, not got any payment after April 6. For the 2020-21 season, our parchis are showing zero price and zero payment, even though our mill began crushing from November 5,” he mentioned.
UP mills, as of January 5, owe farmers Rs 2,470 crore out of the Rs 35,898 crore SAP worth of cane that they crushed within the 2019-20 season. They have additional crushed 363.20 lakh tonnes of cane within the present season, which is price about Rs 11,660 crore finally 12 months’s SAP of Rs 315/quintal for basic and Rs 325/quintal for early-maturing varieties. Of the Rs 11,660 crore, they’ve paid simply Rs 2,427 crore as on date.
Non-payment of final season’s dues and no SAP being declared for 2020-21, with greater than two months of crushing over, can emerge as a possible flashpoint within the ongoing farmers’ agitation.
“These protests are not about a single crop or state. It is about repealing the three farm laws and making MSP a legal right, which impacts all crops and farmers across India. But I will not rule out ganna (sugarcane) becoming an issue after January 8 if our talks with the government fail,” Rakesh Tikait, spokesperson of the Bhartiya Kisan Union, instructed The Indian Express.
The UP authorities is underneath stress to boost the cane SAP, which has gone up by solely Rs 10/quintal (from Rs 305 to Rs 315 for basic varieties) throughout its time period from 2017-18.
“The cane price was hiked from Rs 125 to Rs 240/quintal under Bahujan Samaj Party (2007-08 to 2011-12) and from Rs 240 to Rs 305/quintal under Samajwadi Party (2012-13 to 2016-17). This government has neither increased the SAP after 2017-18 nor forced mills to pay even that,” alleged Jitender Singh Hooda, an 8-acre farmer from Kheri Bairagi village in Shamli.

The UP authorities is alleged to be contemplating a Rs 10/quintal cane SAP rise for 2020-21. According to sources, the brand new worth was speculated to be introduced this week, however “they have decided to wait for the agitation to subside”.
UP farmers have harvested over two-thirds of their ‘ratoon’ cane, whereas the following ‘plant’ crop shall be prepared solely after February. They have additionally accomplished sowing of wheat within the ratoon crop-vacated fields. “The rain in the last few days has helped save us one irrigation. It gives us enough time to be at Ghazipur,” Hooda mentioned.
Punjab and Haryana farmers began arriving on the borders of Delhi after planting wheat by mid-November and the primary spherical of urea software and irrigation. For UP farmers, December is peak season, because it coincides with ratoon cane harvesting and late sowing of wheat. But they, too, now have some spare time