Reservation process for cane area underway in UP

Against the backdrop of high sugar prices and an estimated 20 per cent shortfall in cane production, the cane area reservation in Uttar Pradesh is underway and is likely to be completed by the end of this month.

Under the UP Sugarcane (Regulation of Purchase and Supply) Act, 1953, farmers supply their produce to a sugar mill fixed by the UP cane commissioner order – known as reservation order.

There are an estimated four million cane farmers in UP and the total cane requirement of all the operational sugar mills is around 80 million tonnes.

However, this year the cane production is estimated at 90 million tonnes, of which only around 40 million tonnes will be available for crushing. Rest of the cane will be utilised in gur and khandsari units or consumed directly.

Cane Commissioner Sudhir M Bogade is hearing the grievances of cane farmers before passing the reservation order. The crushing is likely to begin from the first week of November.

The hearings for the Meerut, Saharanpur and Moradabad divisions has been concluded and other divisions will be taken up in due course.

Apart from issues related to pending cane dues, farmers are also demanding hike of the state advised price (SAP).

The cane acreage in UP will shrink under two million hectares during the 2009-10 season against 2.14 million hectares during last season. The sugar production dropped below 4 million tonnes in 2008-09 compared to 7.3 million tonnes and 8.5 million tonnes in 2008 and 2007 respectively.

The Centre has declared the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 107 for cane, while the state has decided on a higher SAP to remunerate its farmers.

There are about 150 sugar mills in UP, out of which only 132 units are in the working condition and had participated in the 2008-09 crushing season.