By Gopi Gyawali, Nawalparasi, Jan. 3: The Lumbini Sugar Mill located at Sunawal of Nawalparasi (West) has started clearing the due payment to the sugarcane farmers after the police arrested Manoj Kumar Agrawal, director of the mill on Thursday evening from Birgunj.

Sagar Mani Pathak, Nawalparasi Chief District Officer informed that Agrawal was released on Friday after he agreed in writing to clear all the payment dues within one week.

It has been said that the Lumbini Sugar Mill had started providing the payments to the sugarcane farmers from Friday itself.

The sugar mill had been shut from the last two years after the death of Manish Agarwal, on whose name the industry had been registered.

During the partition of properties within the Agrawal family, Manoj Agrawal had received the entitlement to the industry and had been preparing to resume its operations soon.

Bijaya Gupta, managing director of the mill, said that the sugar mill had paid Rs. 11 million on the first day.

The sugar mill has said that all the due payments would be released by January 8.

The sugarcane farmers had staged a demonstration in the Kathmandu valley owing to the default of the industry to pay Rs. 80 million due.  

Moreover, Indira Sugar Mill at Kudiya of Nawalparasi (west) is also yet to provide Rs. 50 million to the sugarcane farmers. "Owner of the mill Rakesh Agrawal is out of contact. We are preparing to arrest him as well," said CDO Pathak.
Around 1,200 sugarcane farmers of Nawalparasi (West) are yet to receive Rs. 130 million from two sugar mills of the district.