Farmers call for rasta roko tomorrow in protest against delay in sugar MSP

Sugarcane farmers have given a call for a rasta roko on the Pune-Bengaluru National Highway on Saturday in protest against the delay in the revision of Minimum Selling Price for sugar.

“We are also upset with the Ramesh Chand panel not visiting the protesters at the Gurlapur Cross site in Belagavi district. At a meeting with the protesters, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi promised that the committee will begin consultations from district itself. That did not happen. They have invited some of our leaders to Bengaluru for discussion. That is not what Mr. Joshi promised. We condemn that,” Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha leader Chunappa Pujeri told reporters in Mudalagi on Thursday.

He said that the State government invited him and Shashikant Padasalagi Guruji to attend the consultation meeting in Bengaluru on Thursday, but they chose not to go.

“There are over one lakh farmers at Gurlapur Cross. We need to be with them. Also, we believe that the committee should come to the farmers. Farmers will not go to Bengaluru or New Delhi,” he said.

Farmers shifted their protest to Gurlapur Cross, after they ended their Hubballi Chalo in Tegur of Dharwad district. They announced a Karnataka bandh on Tuesday but, postponed it after hearing about the Ramesh Chand committee’s scheduled visit to the State on Thursday.

Their main demands include a revised MSP of ₹60 per kg of sugar, a Fair and Remunerative Price of ₹5,500 per tonne of sugarcane and a State Advised Price of ₹1,000 per tonne of sugarcane.

They also want differential pricing policy for sugar at different rates for domestic and commercial consumers and strict enforcement of the Sugar Control Order to enable the State government to monitor sugar factories and avoid fraudulent weighing of sugarcane and recovery of sugar.