DHARMAPURI: Farmers are aggrieved by the increasing labour cost in sugarcane cultivation, urging mills to take steps to curb rising costs.
During the farmers' grievance day meeting, they expressed their concern over the rising labour costs involved with sugarcane cultivation. Farmers urged the administration to take steps to regulate labour costs or offer assistance to farmers in the form of subsidies to tackle rising labour costs.
Speaking to TNIE, G Murali from Kadathur block said, "A farmer starts a sugarcane harvest by availing crop loans of Rs 70,000 for planting, fertilisers, and pesticides. During harvest, he spends about Rs 1,200 per labourer for every tonne. An acre of sugarcane fields provides about 27 tonnes of sugarcane, so we spend about Rs 1 lakh per acre.
We get about Rs 3,612 per tonne for a recovery rate of 10.43%. So a significant portion of our profits is lost. If only the labour cost were bearable, we could manage cultivation, but as it stands, there is no other alternative. Therefore, we urge the mills and district administration to intervene and offer a solution."
SA Chinnasamy, state president of Tamilaga Vivasayigal Sangam, said, "In my own field, I spent Rs 1,400 per tonne; we need about a dozen labourers to clear several acres. Further, as the grinding season comes to a halt, there is a risk of costs reaching about Rs 2,000 per tonne. Last year, at the end of the grinding season, labour cost was about Rs 1,800 per tonne. The situation is unfavourable for farmers."
R Priya, Managing Director of Subaramaniya Siva Cooperative Sugar Mill, said, "For the welfare of farmers, we had organised a labour force to control labour cost. But, in most cases, farmers employ the labourers themselves, and we cannot intervene in their decisions."