BJP plans to woo cane farmers in west UP

MEERUT: In an attempt to widen its base in west Uttar Pradesh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is likely to use sugarcane issue to win over farmers.

The state has over 40 lakh sugarcane farmers of whom 25 lakh are in west UP.

Sugarcane minister in UP government Suresh Rana said the farmers were on the Yogi government’s priority and efforts were on to benefit farmers in all possible ways.

Being a major cash crop in the region, sugarcane has social and political significance. All major political parties try to woo sugarcane farmers for political gain.

Traditionally, sugarcane farmers were the supporters of Chaudhary Charan Singh and largely continued to back the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) of Ajit Singh and formed a winning equation for the party with Muslims.

However, the equation was broken following the Muzaffarnagar riots in 2013 after which majority of these farmers voted in favour of Modi.

In return, the Bharatiya Janata Party rewarded Sanjeev Baliyan with a ministry at the Centre and later replaced him with another Jat leader and former Mumbai police commissioner Dr Satyapal Singh.

Party leaders are happy that no farmers’ movement has taken place in west UP in the seven months of BJP government.

Rana said the state government’s decision to double the existing 25,000 quintal per day crushing capacity of Mohiuddinpur sugar mill in Meerut would benefit the farmers of Meerut and Ghaziabad Lok Sabha constituency.

“The state government has also decided to reopen the Wave group sugar mill in Bulandshahr. The mill was sold during the BSP rule in 2011 and now the Yogi government has issued directives for its reopening. Farmers of Bulandshahr and Noida Lok Sabha constituencies will benefit from it,” he said.

“The government has allotted a budget of ₹311 crore for the expansion of Ramala sugar mill in Baghpat. The first instalment of ₹84 crore has already been released. Thousands of sugarcane farmers from neighbouring Kairana, Muzaffarnagar and Baghpat constituencies reap its benefits,” he said.

The government has also decided to restart Daya Sugar Mill in Saharanpur which was lying closed for the last nine years. The chief minister had recently inaugurated a molasses plant at Sneh Road sugar factory on Nazibabad-Kotdwar Road.

The government has approved the ₹325-crore proposal to double the existing 25000 quintal per day crushing capacity of the mill.

The mill caters to thousands of sugarcane farmers in Bijnor and Najibabad Lok Sabha constituencies.

Plans are also afoot to restart the Venus sugar mill in Chandausi area in Sambhal which was closed nine years ago.

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The state government has also decided to reopen the Wave group sugar mill in Bulandshahr. SURESH RANA, Sugarcane minister