By Our Correspondent
Sarlahi, Jan. 24: Sugarcane farmers in the southern part of Sarlahi, who are the largest sugarcane producers in the country, have been frustrated for years due to non-payment from the sugar mills.
Some farmers who sold sugarcane to Annapurna Sugar Mill Dhankaul in the southern region have not received money for the past four years.
According to the District Administration Office, Malangawa, Godaita-based Mahalaxmi Sugar Mill has cleared dues of farmers.
Sugarcane farmers had to stage agitation in Kathmandu since last year to get payment for sugarcane.
Hariwan-based Indushankar Sugar Mill has started paying for sugarcane of the current season purchased from farmers.
After the Indushankar Sugar Industry started making payments, the farmers who sold sugarcane in the industry are happy.
Among the sugarcane farmers of the same district, some farmers are crying due to not being paid by some sugar industries and some farmers are happy.
Hundreds of farmers in the far-south west region, who have been cultivating sugarcane as a cash crop and selling it to the local Annapurna Sugar Mill, have been in debt for years due to non-payment.
Ram Swarth Raya, chairman of Sugarcane Farmers Struggle Committee, Harishyam Rai, secretary and Ram Bikas Pandit, have announced the second phase of agitation issuing a press statement.
Despite the agreement reached with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies in Kathmandu on December 28, 2020 to pay all the arrears to the farmers by January 21, the second phase of the agitation has been announced as the money has not been deposited in the accounts of many farmers yet, said Raya.
Thakur Nepal, senior administrative officer of Indushankar Sugar Mill, said that the payment was being made on the basis of last year's price.
Indushankar, which came into operation on December 21 last year, has already made public the payment schedule of sugarcane brought by the farmers till January 13, this year.
The industry has so far paid Rs. 200 million to farmers. The industry has again published the second payment schedule of Rs. 120 million from last Thursday. The industry has so far crushed 800,000 quintals of sugarcane.
Kapil Muni Mainali, president of the Nepal Federation of Sugarcane Producers, said that the payment process of Indushankar in Hariwan was better than other sugar industries in the country.
Farmers in the southern region have been encouraged to sell sugarcane to Indushankar.
Sugarcane is cultivated in an area of ​​more than 20,000 hectares in Sarlahi. There are three sugar industries including Indushankar, Annapurna and Mahalakshmi. Of the three, Indushankar and Mahalakshmi sugar industries are now in operation.
Farmers have not given sugarcane to Annapurna last year and this year. The industry has been closed since last year.