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Growers demand Rs650 sugarcane price, plan Nov 4 protestPakistan
Sindh growers say paddy is selling for as little as Rs2,600 per maund and want sugarcane fixed at Rs650, wheat at Rs5,000, and crushing to start on time.
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Growers in Sindh have demanded that the provincial government fix the price of sugarcane at Rs650 per maund and start crushing operations on time, warning that delays every year leave farmers facing heavy losses.
The demand was made by the Sindh Abadgar Ittehad, a growers’ association, at a meeting in Hyderabad. Its president, Nawab Zubair Talpur, said delays in announcing sugarcane prices and in starting crushing operations cause financial losses to growers year after year, and that the cycle must end.
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The association also turned its attention to wheat. Talpur rejected reports that the government was considering fixing the wheat price at Rs4,500 per maund and demanded that it instead be set at Rs5,000 per maund. The meeting discussed the federal government’s wheat policy and prices, and growers argued that a lower support price would not cover their costs.
Paddy prices were another source of concern. Talpur said growers were facing difficulties as paddy was being sold for as little as Rs2,600 per maund in upper Sindh. For farmers who have already paid for seed, fertiliser, water and labour, selling at that level leaves little room to recover their investment, let alone make a living from the crop.
Sugarcane is a particularly sensitive crop for growers because of its timing. Mills need to start crushing when the crop is ready, and any delay means the cane loses weight and quality while farmers wait. That is why growers’ groups press every year for both a price announcement and a firm crushing date, rather than a price alone.
To press their case, the association announced that it would stage a protest on 4 November, marching from the Karachi Press Club to the Chief Minister’s House. The protest is intended to draw the provincial government’s attention to agricultural pricing concerns before the crushing season gets fully under way.
The demands come at a difficult moment for farming families. Input costs have risen, water availability remains a concern, and market prices for crops such as paddy have not kept pace. Growers say that without a fair support price, many small farmers struggle to plant the next crop.
The association’s message is therefore about more than a single number. It is asking for timely decisions, a sugarcane price of Rs650 per maund, a wheat support price of Rs5,000 per maund, and crushing that starts when it should. Whether the government responds before the planned protest will be closely watched by growers across the province.
For now, the growers have set out their position clearly and given a date for their protest. The ball, they say, is in the government’s court.
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