The Hindu : Karnataka / Udupi News : Delegation to seek help for revival of factory

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Sep 20, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Udupi

Delegation to seek help for revival of factory

By Our Staff Correspondent

UDUPI, SEPT. 19. A meeting convened by the district administration on Friday to discuss the delay in payment of dues to farmers by the Brahmavar Sugar Factory decided to send the MLAs and MLCs in the district in a delegation to the Chief Minister, N. Dharam Singh, to seek the help of the State Government to revive the factory.

The meeting chaired by the Deputy Commissioner, S.R. Umashankar, was attended by four MLAs and an MLC, besides representatives of farmers, the management, and the workers of the factory.

The representatives of the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh said the farmers had not been paid their dues, which totalled to Rs. 3.5 crores.

They demanded that the factory release Rs. 96 lakhs for the sugarcane supplied in 2001-02. The banks from which they had taken loans were issuing notices to them. They alleged that the management of the factory was resorting to diversionary tactics on the issue.

The workers of the factory said they had not been paid their salaries for the past 21 months.

Molahalli Jayasheela Shetty, chairman of the factory, said the factory was doing everything to pay the dues of farmers and the salaries of the workers. He listed the measures taken by the factory in this regard. But this failed to convince either the farmers or the workers.

V.S. Acharya, MLC, said the factory owed Rs. 22 crores to the Government.

K. Jayaprakash Hegde, Brahmavar MLA, said the factory was in the red. It was doubtful if the farmers would cultivate sugarcane even after the completion of the Varahi Irrigation Project. Many vented dams had been constructed in the Brahmavar Assembly Constituency to encourage the cultivation of sugarcane. But many farmers were cultivating vegetables, he said.

To this, the farmers said they would cultivate sugarcane once the project was completed.

Action plan

Mr. Umashankar said the Government had allotted Rs. 20 crores for the Varahi Irrigation Project. But the farmers would have to wait for two to three years for its completion. An action plan to deal with the interim period should be drawn, he said. It was decided that the delegation of MLAs and MLCs would request the Chief Minister to take steps to waive the loans taken by farmers for cultivation of sugarcane. The recovery proceedings by banks should be stopped, the meeting said.

K. Raghupati Bhat, Udupi MLA; Lalaji Mendan, Kaup MLA; and Sunil Kumar, Karkala MLA; were present.

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