Belagavi , Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Tuesday said that certain understanding had been arrived at with sugar factory representatives on the sugar price issue after discussions, and a final decision will be taken based on the rate fixed by the Centre.
However, he declined to disclose the rate proposed during the discussions. The factory owners had even offered to hand over four or five factories to the government to run, citing their financial difficulties. He cited the example of the government-owned Mandya Sugar Factory, which was receiving state assistance but had yet to achieve the desired level of performance. “Farmers as well as the factories must survive.
He said factory representatives had agreed that the price would be decided based on the rate fixed by the central government following the initiative of Union Minister Pralhad Joshi. The chief minister said farmers had called off their proposed protest outside Joshi’s residence after receiving assurances from the union minister and the state government. The union minister had promised to personally hold discussions to resolve the issue and had fulfilled that commitment, he said. Shivakumar said farmers and sugar factories were interdependent, and the survival of the industry was important for both. A similar situation had arisen in the district in the past, when factories were handed over to farmers’ organisations with government support, he said. The livelihood of farmers is important to the government,” the CMO said.
The farmers and factory owners are expected to announce their final decision within two days after discussing the proposal among themselves, according to a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office .
