Sugarcane growers here have demanded appropriate compensation after their sugarcane plantation suffered extensive damage due to the red rot disease. Red rot is one of the major constraints in the profitable cultivation of sugarcane. This disease drastically retards the yield and considerably deteriorates the juice quantity and quality thus hitting both the cane growers and millers.
Farmers of 24 VDCs of Sunsari and Morang districts had cultivated sugarcane in some 900 bigha of land. Sugarcane growers on Friday submitted a four-point memorandum to Prime Minister Sushil Koirala through the chief district officer, demanding the problems be resolve at the earliest. They have given a three-day ultimatum to the government to address their demand. Last year, the farmers were forced to burn their products after mills refused to buy them, while most of them were forced to sell on credit. As Reliance Sugar Mill in Bara was unable to take consignments from the farmers last year, the cane growers fear that they might face a similar problem this year too.
