UP collating sugarcane crop loss due to floods

The Uttar Pradesh government is taking stock of the loss to sugarcane crop in the state due to the recent floods.

In a preliminary report sent to the state relief commissioner’s office, the sugarcane department had estimated loss of almost 6 per cent to the standing sugarcane crop. However, this figure is likely to increase in the final report.

The recent spate of floods had ravaged about 33 districts, affecting swathes of kharif and sugarcane crop.

Before the floods, official figures had estimated the sugarcane acreage to increase by 15 per cent over last year to about 21 million hectares for the 2010-11 crushing season.

“We are in the process of preparing the final report about the loss of sugarcane crop due to floods and the consolidated demand by all the sugar mills operating in UP,” a senior sugarcane official told Business Standard.

Last year, sugarcane production in UP had stood at 98 million tonnes. Although, this year’s sugarcane production will beat last year’s figure, it would not be substantial considering the loss due to floods.

In the recent series of divisional meetings of sugarcane department, the demand for sugarcane by sugar mills had also registered 20 per cent increase for the coming crushing season.

During 2009-10, the UP sugar mills had produced 5.162 million tonnes of sugar compared to 4 million tonnes the previous year. There are almost 4.2 million sugarcane farmers in UP and the annual consumption of sugar stands at 5 million tonnes.

The state sugar commissioner will soon issue the reservation order binding individual farmers and societies to a particular sugar mill for the supply of sugarcane for crushing.

UP is the largest sugarcane producing state and the second largest sugar producer after Maharashtra.

Last year, UP had announced a Rs 25 hike in the State Advised Price (SAP) over the 2008-09 crushing season, fixing it at Rs 165 per quintal for common variety. Almost 80 per cent of the sugarcane crop is of common variety.

The farmers have demanded that cane price should not be less than Rs 250 per quintal considering the increase in the cost of farm input.

There are about 132 operational sugar units in UP.