Pipraich sugar mill to start functioning by Feb: Adityanath

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inspected the ongoing construction work of a Rs 384-crore sugar mill at Pipraich Saturday and said it would become operational by February, 2019.

"The mill was closed for 20 years and the farmers were facing a lot of difficulties...equipped with modern technology, it will also produce 27 megawatt electricity. A distillery will also be built here. The mill will start functioning from February, 2019," he said.

"The Pipraich sugar mill will be the first sugar mill in the state where sulphur-free refined sugar will be made, which has a high demand in the international market. Arrangements for making ethanol directly from sugarcane have also been made," the chief minister said.

In the first year of the mill, 10 lakh quintals of sugarcane would be required and once it became fully functional, it would require 80 lakh quintals of sugarcane, he said, adding that sugarcane farmers would not face difficulties anymore and would get good money for their yield.

A number of direct and indirect employment opportunities would be created after the mill became functional, the chief minister said.

Till now, payments of Rs 39,000 crore were made to the sugarcane farmers and the state government was making preparations to clear last year's dues of Rs 6,000 crore to them by November 30, he added.

The state government had also made arrangements for soft loans, Adityanath said, adding that the money would directly be transferred to the bank accounts of farmers, instead of the mill's account.

The government was making efforts to start all the sugar mills in the state by November 25 and three new sugar mills might become functional by February next year, he said.

The chief minister also gave directions to the officials concerned to prepare a proposal for an overbridge at Pipraich to facilitate the traffic flow.