PONDA: The sugarcane farmers on Tuesday staged an indefinite sit-in protest in front of the Sanjivani Sugar Factory against the government’s failure to start an ethanol plant in public private partnership (PPP) mode.
It is pertinent to note that in 2020, the Government had promised to start an ethanol plant during the closure of the factory. The farmers warned that until the government starts the ethanol plant, they will intensify their agitation and if need be, they even threatened to march to Azad Maidan, Panjim.
The farmers said that their main demand is that the government start an ethanol Plant and claimed that a contractor is ready to operate the plant at Sanjivani factory. They alleged that the government is silent and not responding to their demand.
The farmers are worried that the government will pay them compensation only for five years, but questioned the government as to what will happen after five years if there is no buyer for their cash crop. They demanded the government come out clear on Sanjivani factory’s future.
Sugarcane farmers’ association president Rajendra Desai said, “This is a chain agitation and each day the farmers will protest from 9 am to 5 pm. After the government expressed its inability to run the factory, the farmers even submitted a proposal that a Karnataka contractor is ready to run an ethanol plant with existing infrastructure at Sanjivani factory and that the contractor is even ready to provide Rs 1.25 cr annual revenue to the government.”
“However, three months have passed and till date the government has not replied to us. Further, the government has assured to compensate the farmers following the Sanjivani factory’s closure in 2020 which will continue for five years. The farmers are worried about their future as sugar cane is the only cash crop that has sustained them, Desai said.
The farmers said that to awaken the government, the agitation was started to restart the factory at earliest. “We want the government to start operations of a sugar factory with an ethanol plant,” they demanded.
