Gadarpur Sugar Mill closed by the previous Government might be sold off while at the same time the State Government is now considering waiving the loans pending with the cooperative sugar mills. This is what the State Minister in charge of sugar production Prakash Pant said while meeting the secretary sugarcane and asked the latter to firm up a proposal to be tabled during the next cabinet meeting. Notably, to review the payment of sugarcane farmers for the crushing season of 2016-17 and the functioning of the sugar mills operating in the state and their present financial condition, Pant convened a meeting in Dehradun on Tuesday. This was the third such meeting convened since he took charge of the department.
During the meeting, the secretary sugarcane development and sugar industry Vinod Sharma apprised the minister that the mills, including those run by the state government, cooperatives and the private players, had crushed 341.17 lakh quintal sugarcane and produced 33.33 lakh quintal sugar during the crushing season 2016-17. He said that the figures were better than those of the crushing season 2015-16. He attributed the rise in the quantum of productivity to better functioning of cooperative and public sector- run mills this season. He said that the production had gone up by 0.16 percent. He further informed that since the formation of the new government, the state-based mills have made payment to the tune of Rs 137.27 crore- including Rs 119.51 by private mills and Rs 17.76 crore by cooperative and public sector mills.
Taking note of things, the minister instructed the managing director Uttarakhand Cooperative Sugar Mills Association limited to go all -out to sell the stock so as to enable the sugarcane growers to be paid at the earliest. He also stressed on the available stocks of molasses to be sold in the markets.
He said that since Gadarpur sugar mill was closed, 118 acres of land along with the equipment have been lying unused with employees and the banks remaining unpaid as far as their dues are concerned. Pant asked the officials concerned to firm up a concrete proposal regarding the mill to be later taken up by the cabinet.
Additional secretary sugarcane development and sugar mills Pradeep Singh Rawat said that cooperative and public sector sugar mills had been given loan by the state government to enable them clear the dues to the sugarcane farmers. However, due to poor financial condition of the mills, they are unable to repay the principal amounts and the outstanding interests on the loans taken, he said, adding that given this situation, no financial institution is ready to give loan to the ailing mills.
Pant said that a proposal must be formulated to have the loans and the interests to be waived off and it must be presented to the cabinet.
Speaking of the proposed up-gradation of Bazpur sugar mill, the minister assured that the government would take appropriate decision to help it to resume production. He instructed all the chief managers/ executive directors to go for repair and maintenance works in their sugar mills on a priority basis to rid the mills of the technical and other problems they might face during the next crushing season.
During the meeting, Deepti Singh, executive director Sugar Mill Kichha, Bhagwat Kishore Mishra, ED of sugar mill Doiwala, Rahul Goel, chief manager Bazpur sugar mill, Vineet Joshi, chief manager Sitarganj Sugar Mill and AK Bhattacharya, GM Uttarakhand Cooperative Sugar Mills Association limited were among those present.