UP sugar industry demands ban on rejected cane varieties

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Uttar Pradesh sugar industry today urged the state government to prohibit the plantation of rejected and unsuitable cane varieties by amending relevant laws.

This has come, when sugarcane acreage is touted to increase 20 per cent over last year, to 2.15 million hectares.

The industry feels such a step would egg farmers to grow better cane varieties and result in higher sugar recovery and resultant sugar production.

“We will formally recommend on these vital points to the state government,” Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, director, R L Yadav said at ‘Sugar Tech 2010-Integrated Approach towards Sustainable Development’ organised by Confederation of Indian Industry here.

Uttar Pradesh infrastructure and industrial development commissioner Anoop Mishra said the time was ripe for mills to move to integrated facilities entailing both sugar and ethanol production for viability of the sector.

Although it is the largest cane producer in India, it trails Maharashtra in sugar production and ranks much lower in the percentage of drawl (cane diverted to mills for crushing) and cane recovery (sugar production per quintal of cane). Drawl in UP is 38 per cent compared to Karnataka is 92 per cent and the national average of 48 per cent. The recovery percentage in the state is 8.94 vis-à-vis Maharashtra’s 11.44.

“The capacity utilisation in Uttar Pradesh is about 54 per cent compared to Gujarat’s 94 per cent and all-India average of 64 per cent,” said, executive president, Dalmia Chini Mills N C Paliwal informed.

“The mills should persuade farmers in their cane reservation area not to grow rejected varieties,” former additional cane commissioner Ram Murti Singh said.

Earlier, Yadav suggested the government fix the maximum sugar price and minimum cane price and let the industry and farmers negotiate the cane price.

“Let there be a formal agreement between the mills and farmers for cane supply and price, since it would also ensure moderate prices for the consumers,” he added.

Sugarcane Technologists’ Association of India (STAI) president G S C Rao said changes in agronomy and intercropping pattern would increase the farmers’ income as India had the world’s best manpower in sugarcane sector.

CII UP State Council chairman Jayant Krishna said almost 50 million Indian people depended on sugar industry for livelihood and India has stake of 11 per cent in the global sugar production.