Bengaluru
Former Chief Minister and MP Basavaraj Bommai has urged the Karnataka government to invoke the State Advisory Price (SAP) provisions to ensure fair remuneration for sugarcane farmers. He stated that the BJP government, during its tenure, had enacted the SAP law empowering the state to independently decide sugarcane prices based on various production factors.
In a post on social media platform X, Bommai said that under the SAP law, the state government has complete authority to fix sugarcane prices by considering factors such as cultivation costs, sugar production expenses, by-product revenues, and market prices. He lamented that the current Congress government has not utilized these powers so far. If the Chief Minister exercises this authority, it will bring justice to farmers and lead to a fair and lasting solution to the ongoing sugarcane crisis, he remarked.
Bommai also commended the Belagavi Deputy Commissioner, who recently held discussions with sugar mill owners and managed to raise the price of sugarcane from ₹2,900 to ₹3,200 per tonne, gaining appreciation from local farmers. He, however, expressed concern that despite Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s day-long meeting with stakeholders, the proposed additional ₹50 hike per tonne was accepted by only some mill owners. If an officer can achieve such progress, but the Chief Minister cannot, it raises questions about the credibility of his leadership, Bommai observed.
While terming the government’s move to grant a ₹50 increase as a positive step, Bommai reminded that he had earlier urged the Chief Minister to intervene in power purchase agreements for electricity generated by sugar mills at ₹5.5 per unit. Stressing that sugar is a commercial crop and a daily necessity, he said the Centre should maintain a balance between consumer affordability and farmer welfare, but ultimately, protecting farmers’ interests remains the duty of the state government, he emphasized.
