Chandigarh, Dec 13 (PTI) Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday said he will raise the issue of sugarcane farmers in the assembly as the state government has not fixed the rate for the crop till now despite the commencement of the crushing season.

"We condemn the government's indifference towards sugarcane farmers. Despite the commencement of the sugarcane season, the government has not announced the rate or any hike for the produce till now," the former chief minister said.

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“Sugarcane farmers are agitating for the demand of Rs 450 per quintal rate. Despite repeated demands, the government did not increase the rate by a single paisa this time. Due to this, the farmers have to bear the loss of hundreds of crores of rupees,” Hooda, who is Leader of the Opposition, said in a statement here.

"The Congress will raise the voice of sugarcane farmers in the upcoming assembly session against the unjust attitude being meted out to the farmers by the government," he said.

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Hooda said the issue of cases filed against farmers during the farmer's agitation, will also be raised in the coming session, beginning later this month.

Notably, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) held protests in parts of the state on Monday against the state government's alleged delay in fixing the state advised price (SAP) for sugarcane for the current season even though crushing is underway.

The farmers' outfit has said that Punjab state has already fixed the sugarcane SAP at Rs 380 per quintal. They warned of an agitation next month if the Haryana government fails to fix the SAP at Rs 450 per quintal.

Hooda said sugarcane has started reaching mills, but the farmers have not been paid till now.

"There is a lot of anger among the farmers on this issue. The government is repeatedly forcing the farmers to take to the streets. We demand early payment to the farmers, along with an increase in rate from the government,” he added.

The former chief minister said that "farmers are facing huge financial crisis and the government is sleeping".

"This is the first time in the history of Haryana that it has been more than a month since the mills started their operations, but the government has not yet declared the rate of sugarcane, while the price of the produce should be declared before selling it,” he added.

The former Chief Minister said government apathy and neglect has forced sugarcane farmers to sell their produce to crushers at the rate of Rs 260 to 270 per quintal.

"This is happening at a time when molasses, left after making sugar, is also being sold at a price of Rs 800 and bagasse at more than Rs 400 per quintal. Ethanol is also being made from sugarcane, which the government is selling at Rs 100 per litre, but the farmers are not getting any benefit,” he said.

The Leader of the Opposition said sugarcane cultivation in the state is proving to be a loss-making deal for the last several years because of the high impact of diseases and pests in sugarcane, which has reduced the yield significantly.

"The input cost of the farmer is increasing more than the price of sugarcane. The yield of sugarcane per acre has decreased by 25 percent in the state and the cost price has increased by more than 30 percent. This is why increase in the price of sugarcane is very important to ensuring financial viability," he said.

Hooda said the price of sugarcane should also be fixed before sowing, in line with how price of other crops is declared before sowing to ensure that the farmers sow sugarcane after assessing the profit and loss.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)