SUNDAY, MAY 05, 2024
ALFRED FERNANDES
SANGUEM: In June 2020, sugarcane farmers in the State were shocked when the Administrator of Sanjivani Sugar Factory, Dr Tariq Thomas said that the factory will not start operations in future.
From June till September, the uncertainty over the continuance of operations of the factory crushed the hopes of the farmers and threatened to have spillover effects like unpaid loans and an economic crisis.
Last week, the government transferred the Sanjivani Sugar Factory from the Registrar of Cooperative Societies to the Agriculture Department for its smooth functioning. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant stated that the Cabinet has approved an amendment to the Business of the Government of Goa (Allocation) Rules, 1987.
But will the transfer lead to new hopes? Will the factory be functional? Will farmers get a fair support price for their sugarcane? These are fundamental questions.
For sugarcane cultivators what is basically required at this moment is immediate repair works of the factory and making the factory operational, says agriculturist Prashant Gauns Dessai from Xeldem-Quepem, who is a sugarcane cultivator for 35 years.
“In February 2019, the then Agriculture Minister Vijai Sardesai had taken the same decision. However, after Goa Forward and the BJP parted ways, the decision changed and the factory continued to remain under the ambit of the co-operative sector”, informed Gauns Desai.
He urged the government to first start the factory, then hand over the factory to the Agriculture Department. Gauns Dessai wanted the passing of supplementary special budget to infuse life into the ailing Sanjivani Sugar Factory.
“The Sanjivani Sugar Factory is the life of the sugarcane cultivators in Goa and there is no other option for the sugarcane cultivators to send their produce for crushing,” said Chandan Unandkar, a sugarcane cultivator from Sanguem.
Unandkar was practical. “But right now what we need is the solution to crush the sugarcane, which is under cultivation. In case of sugarcane, the seeds once cultivated remain for production for three years after which fresh seeds are put for cultivation. Major investment is made in the first year which is then recovered in the subsequent two years. Hence, moving to other crops was hardly an option.”
Sanguem MLA Prasad Gaonkar, however, saw the advantage of handing over the factory to the Agriculture Department. “Handing over the factory to the Agriculture Department from the co-operative sector will enable the government to get subsidy 60% funding from the Central Government. The modernisation of the outdated Sanjivani Sugar Factory, will be possible”, claimed Gaonkar.
The MLA wanted an expert committee to supervise the functioning and revival of the sugar factory to make the transition sweet. It’s a deal waiting to be made.
