Sugar mills should focus on by-products: Ajit Pawar
Beed, April 8 (UNI) Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday stated that sugar mills should focus on ethanol production with sugar from sugarcane. Also, factories should focus on by-products, without which there is no way out, he added. He was speaking at the inaugural function of Yedeshwari Sugar Factory’s distillery at Anandgaon (Sa.) in Kauj taluka of district with an expanded capacity of 60 kg per day.
Water Resources and Beneficiary Area Development Minister Jayant Patil presided over the program. Minister for Social Justice and Special Assistance and Guardian Minister Dhananjay Munde, MLA Prakash Solanke, MLA Sandeep Kshirsagar, MLA Sanjay Daund, President of Yedeshwari Sugar Factory Bajrang Sonwane among others were present on the platform. Sant Bhagwan Baba hostels are being started at 41 places for the children of sugarcane workers in 10 districts including in Beed. The hostel will provide accommodation, meals and education to the students, said Pawar.
Pawar said that factories should not be closed until all the sugarcane in the area has been crushed. The government will help with transport subsidies and recovery losses. Instructions have been given to arrange harvester in the area where the cane is to be harvested. Sugarcane growers should also cultivate sugarcane according to the availability of water. There will be no shortage of funds for the development of Beed district, he promised.
The government has taken steps to provide incentive financial assistance to farmers who repay their loans up to Rs. 2 lakhs and crop loans at zero percent rate. The government has allocated around Rs 1.25 lakh crore for infrastructure, he added. UNI VKB GK
