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Hooda's personal intervention settles mill-farmers dispute

Special Correspondent

Farmers to get arrears amounting to Rs. 27.89 crores

Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda

CHANDIGARH: Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda personally intervened on Tuesday to bring about an amicable settlement between Saraswati Sugar Mills, Yamunanagar, and the farmers of the area on payment of arrears amounting to Rs. 27.89 crores to be paid by the former for the sugarcane purchased by it during 2002-2003.

Mr. Hooda had convened a meeting of these farmers and the Chairman-cum-Managing Director of the Saraswati Sugar Mills, Ranjit Puri, at his residence here.

The working president of the Haryana unit of the Congress, Ram Prakash, and the Managing Director of Haryana State Federation of Cooperative Sugar Mills, Vimal Chander, were also present.

It was decided in principle that the Saraswati Sugar Mills would pay the arrears of Rs. 27.89 crores to the farmers. Mr. Hooda said all sugar mills in the State should buy sugarcane from the farmers at the same rate.

Although the farmers were adamant in also demanding the interest on the amount of arrears they agreed to forgo their claim on the plea of the Chief Minister.

"Double quantum of subsidy"

Meanwhile, Mr Hooda has urged Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to double the quantum of subsidy under the Promotion of Farm Mechanisation scheme to benefit small, marginal and women farmers.

In a letter sent to Mr. Pawar on Tuesday, the Chief Minister pleaded that the subsidy under this scheme be raised from 25 per cent to 50 per cent as it would not only increase the net income of these farmers but also enhance agricultural production.

While stating that the provision of agricultural implements on subsidy to the farmers is a must if "we have to keep pace with modernisation of agriculture", he said that limiting the subsidy to 25 per cent deprived the small and marginal farmers, whose number was increasing all the time due to fragmentation of land holdings, of the full benefit of this scheme.

These farmers usually found it difficult to invest 75 per cent of the cost of the machinery, he added.

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Hooda's personal intervention settles mill-farmers dispute

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