Low prices push sugarcane farmers in Sangareddy towards losses

Sugarcane farmers in Sangareddy are incurring heavy losses as local mills offer prices far below those in Karnataka and Maharashtra. With rising cultivation costs and falling savings, farmers are demanding government intervention, a fixed price of Rs.4,500 per tonne and a bonus of Rs.500

Sangareddy: Sugarcane farmers in the district are suffering major losses as they are being offered significantly lower prices compared to growers in neighbouring Karnataka and Maharashtra. NSL Krishnaveni Sugars Limited in Kothakota, Wanaparthy district, is also offering better prices than the units operating in Sangareddy.

With little support from the government and the industry, many farmers are gradually moving away from sugarcane cultivation. Ganapathi Sugar Industries Limited in Sangareddy and Godavari Gango Agroproducts Limited at Matur in Raikode mandal are offering only Rs.3,700 to Rs.3,800 per tonne, while mills in Karnataka are paying Rs.4,500 per tonne. Even after accounting for harvesting and transportation charges, farmers in Karnataka and Maharashtra are able to save Rs.3,000 to Rs.3,500 per tonne. In contrast, Sangareddy farmers are saving only Rs.2,600 to Rs.2,800 per tonne.

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Speaking to Telangana Today, sugarcane farmer Yekkelli Jagannadh Reddy, who cultivated sugarcane on 12 acres at Mirzapur village in Nyalkal mandal, said NSL Krishnaveni Sugars Limited was offering Rs.4,200 per tonne, yet industries in Sangareddy were refusing to match the price. He said farmers spend about Rs.1 lakh per acre in the first year for a crop harvested once a year, and they can harvest for three consecutive years after planting. However, they must invest an additional Rs.40,000 to Rs.50,000 per acre in the second and third years. With an average yield of 30 tonnes per acre, farmers are unable to save anything in the first year and earn only marginal profits in the next two years.

Seeking government intervention to increase sugarcane prices, Jagannadh Reddy said the government must compel industries to pay Rs.4,500 per tonne. He urged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to provide a bonus of Rs.500 per tonne to support both farmers and the industry. He noted that while paddy farmers receive bonuses twice a year, sugarcane farmers deserve at least one annual bonus. Sugarcane is cultivated in 36,000 acres in the district, mostly in the Zaheerabad region.