By Janarjan Khatri, Sarlahi, Dec. 17: Farmers have been abandoning sugarcane cultivation in recent years due to the hassles of getting payment of their product from sugar mills.

According to the Nepal Federation of Sugarcane Producers, sugarcane production has been declining every year due to the decline in the area of cultivation.

Most of the farmers in the Terai, whose first choice was sugarcane farming until five or six years ago, have given up sugarcane cultivation now. The number of farmers leaving sugarcane cultivation is increasing as the price is not increased as per the cost of production.

Chairman of the federation, Kapil Muni Mainali, said that the attraction of farmers towards sugarcane cultivation had decreased due to the need of organizing agitation every year to maintain right price of sugarcane and take sales revenue from sugar mills.

According to Mainali, farmers are fleeing from sugarcane cultivation lately due to the tendency of sugar mills to hold payment of the farmers for a long time and reluctance of the government to disburse subsidy announced to the sugarcane farmers.

According to the federation, 26 million quintals of sugarcane was produced in the country six years ago in the fiscal year 2070/71 BS. Last year's production was only 16 million quintals. This year, the production will be further reduced to 14 million quintals, said Mainali.

“In recent years sugarcane farmers are frustrated as they are forced to come to the streets every year asking for money to be paid against the sales of their cash crops; what is sadder than this?” Mainali questioned.  

“If the farmers are made more frustrated, the country will be completely dependent on important sugar rather than being self-sufficient. All the sugar industries that are running now will also be closed.”

Out of 14 sugar industries across the country, four have been shut down. Annapurna Sugar Industry Sarlahi, Shri Ram Sugar Mills, Rautahat and Indira Sugar Mill and Lumbini Sugar Factory in Nawalparasi are currently closed. These mills have been closed after the farmers stopped selling sugarcane for not getting payment timely.

Farmers who have given up sugarcane cultivation have started cultivating paddy, maize and vegetables. Farmer Bindeshwar Mandal of Sisautiya in Godaita Municipality-10 of Sarlahi said that most of the farmers had stopped cultivating sugarcane and started cultivating vegetables and other crops.

Farmers cultivating sugarcane have stopped selling it to sugar mills and selling it to the sugarcane crusher industry after receiving immediate payment. Sugarcane crushing industries are purchasing sugarcane at cheaper prices from farmers to make molasses.