In a big relief to farmers, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday announced an increase in sugarcane prices by ₹15 per quintal for the upcoming crushing season. With this, the new price of sugarcane has become ₹ 416 per quintal. After this increase, Punjab has become the state paying the highest sugarcane price in the country. Inaugurating the modernized sugar mill and co-generation plant, Mann said Punjab has once again set an example by setting the highest support price for sugarcane in the entire country, PTI reported.
He said that Punjab’s identity has always been to protect the interests of farmers and give them the highest value. Mann expressed hope that this decision will be extremely beneficial for the sugarcane farmers especially in the border districts, where sugarcane is the major source of income.
Crop diversification will get a boost
The Chief Minister said that sugarcane is an excellent alternative crop, which will strengthen the crop diversification efforts of Punjab. He urged the Central Government to promote sugarcane as a viable alternative to water-intensive crops. Preparations are on to produce more than double the old capacity from the new mill. Talking about the capacity of this mill established in 1980, it started with 1,250 TCD which increased to 2,000 TCD in 1987.
But now the sugarcane production in the region has reached 80 lakh quintals, whereas the old capacity could crush only 25 lakh quintals per season. To overcome this gap, the Punjab Government carried out extensive modernization of the mill. The crushing capacity of the new mill has been increased to 5,000 TCD, which will ensure timely and efficient crushing.
Big increase in revenue
Mann said that a sulphur-free premium sugar plant has been installed in the mill. A 28.5 MW co-generation power plant has been started, out of which it will have the capacity to provide 20 MW power to the State Electricity Corporation. This will generate additional income of approximately ₹20 crore per crushing season, which will strengthen the mill’s financial position. The number of farmers supplying sugarcane to the mill is likely to increase from 2,850 to about 7,025. With this, farmers will not have to depend on private mills located far away and will save both time and transportation costs.
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