New Delhi (NVI): The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today approved assistance of about Rs 3,500 crore for sugarcane farmers, to help them clear outstanding dues.
Addressing press after the cabinet meeting, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved a subsidy of total Rs 3,500 crore for sugar farmers. The subsidy will be given on 60 lakh tons of sugar exports at the rate of Rs 6000 per ton.
He added that 5 crore sugarcane farmers will get benefit from Cabinet’s decision on sugar and also farmers will get this assistance directly into their account.
In a official statement, CCEA stated that, “Farmers sell their sugarcane to the sugar mills, however the farmers are not getting their dues from the sugar mill owners as they have surplus sugar stock. To address this concern, the government is facilitating the evacuation of surplus sugar stock. This will enable payment of dues of the sugarcane farmers.”
The government will incur about Rs 3,500 crore for this purpose and this assistance would be directly credited into farmers’ accounts on behalf of sugar mills against cane price dues and subsequent balance, if any, would be credited to mill’s account, it added.
Furthermore, this subsidy aims at covering expenses on marketing costs including handling, upgrading and other processing costs and costs of international and internal transport.
Also, freight charges on export of upto 60 LMT of sugar limited to Maximum Admissible Export Quota (MAEQ) allocated to sugar mills for sugar season 2020-21.
This decision will also benefit the five crore sugarcane farmers and their dependents, as well as the five lakh workers employed in the sugar mills and related ancillary activities, the CCEA added.
-RJV
