Hubballi: Six sugarcane-laden tractors were set on fire on the state highway at Shirol and Mugalkhod cross of Mudhol taluk in Bagalkot district when the police detained nearly hundred farmers who planned to lay siege to Suvarna Soudha in Belagavi demanding a better price for their produce. However, the farmers allege that it was a conspiracy hatched by some miscreants and owners of sugar mills to disrupt the agitation by destroying their unity.
A large number of farmers have been growing sugarcane in Mudhol taluk but sugar mills in the taluk have failed to pay the minimum support price fixed by the government for their cane. Therefore, hundreds of farmers have been staging a dharna at Sangolli Rayanna circle in Mudhol town since the last one week to exert pressure on the state government to fulfill their demands. They had also submitted a memorandum to the district administration contending that the price offered by sugar mills is not enough owing to rising cost of cultivation and labour.
These farmers were also ready to visit Belagavi to launch an agitation during the Legislative session. But, the police detained the farmers as a precautionary measure. The police action worsened the situation and led to the burning of cane-laden tractors by some miscreants at several places.
“The price offered by sugar mills cannot meet the expenditure incurred by us for fertilizer and labour for producing sugarcane. The mill owners are paying only Rs 2,200 per tonne as against Rs 3,000 per tonne demanded by us. Therefore, we have been staging a peaceful protest against the failure of the government to fulfill our demands including introduction of State Advisory Price (SAP) and payment of sugarcane dues to farmers. But, the police have harassed the farmers by detaining them,” farmer leader Sadashiva Sankeretti said.
Mudhol station police inspector Sanjeev Kamble claimed that the burning of cane-laden tractors was a reaction to the arrest of more than 80 farmers. He said the police team has started an investigation to nab the miscreants responsible for burning the tractors.
