SANGUEM: The sugarcane farmers in Sanguem are sore over the government failure to harvest and transport the sugarcane crop from their plots despite the written assurance given by the government to do so few months back.
Pauto Gaonkar a sugarcane farmer from Wadem Sanguem recalled the five days long agitation held by Sugarcane farmers at Sanguem in January this year demanding compensation to sugarcane farmers in view of the temporary closure of Sanjivani Sugar Factory.
The agitation was later withdrawn after written assurance from the government that the government will pay compensation to the farmers for a period of five years and also undertook to hire a contractor to harvest and transport the sugarcane crop from individual plots by February end.
Pauto Gaonkar however, claimed that nothing is coming forth from the government as of now and a large number of sugarcane cultivators have complained of their crop being not harvested till date making the sugarcane cultivators wary of their production next year.
Sugarcane crop from over 50 plots at Wadem Sanguem and Zanodem Molcornem is still not harvested, claimed another agriculturist Chandan Unandkar who had been at the forefront during the agitation.
Unandkar informed that the government is playing with the sugarcane farmers and we do not actually, know what the government is finally intending to do.
With the failure of the contractor to harvest the crop, the sugarcane cultivators will not be able to undertake fresh cultivation for the coming season and in such an eventuality how will the government pay the farmers the compensation for the next year without any crop at the plots, argues Unandkar.
The plot owners whose crop is not harvested as of now are made to ponder as to what is the next course available to them given the failure of the government-appointed contractor to harvest the crop by end of February.
Moreover the farmers are also left in the lurch as they cannot undertake any other crop production in the plot until the government pays them the compensation.
Josinho Dcosta another prominent farmer from Zanodem Molcornem informed that after toiling hard in the field to get maximum production it pains to see the sugarcane crop getting wasted on the farms
Dcosta informed that the Government has clearly assured of taking the responsibility of harvesting and transporting the sugarcane crop in February. But there is no sign of the contractor as of now and neither any say from the authorities concerned.
Dcosta informed that he has been frequently calling the Committee members appointed by the Government to resolve the Sugarcane farmers issue at regular intervals but except for assurances nothing clear us coming out.
Farmers are bound to lose in the next crop season unless the government decides otherwise, claimed Dcosta.
With no possible solution in sight to harvest the crop in the coming days, the sugarcane farmers have scheduled a meeting with the press on the first Sunday of July to announce their future course of action on the problems plaguing sugarcane producers in Sanguem region.
