Patna, (Bihar Times): The Bihar government’s claims and promises notwithstanding a large number of farmers of North Bihar districts have been burning sugarcane for the last many months to protest the state’s failure to revive the sugar mills.

Incidentally, the strongest protest took place in Marhaura, in Chapra district recently, where one of the first sugar mills of the country came up. There was once a chocolate factory too here.

Though Chapra parliamentary constituency, under which Marhaura falls, is represented by the railway minister Lalu Prasad in the Lok Sabha yet the farmers anger is directed towards the BJP spokesman and former Union minister, Rajiv Pratap Rudy. Also under fire from the farmers is the chairman of the UP-based JHV Distillery and Sugar Ltd, Jawahar Jaiswal.

Media reports say that both Rudi and Jaiswal repeatedly urged the farmers to grow sugarcane over an
area of 65,000 acres while promising to revive the Marhaura sugar mill, close for the last many years.

The two assured the farmers that sugarcane would be bought at the rate of Rs 98 to Rs 110 per quintal and ensured that the mill would start functioning by 2007. However, nothing like this ever happened. The crops are now ready and no buyers are in sight. The desperate farmers had no option left but to burn their crops.

It needs to be mentioned that three RJD MLAs recently barged into the state Assembly premises in sugarcane-loaded bullock carts. The farmers have decided to lodge a case against Rudi and the management of JHV Distillery and invade the Bihar capital with more sugarcane-loaded bullock carts. N K Singh, the president of the Marhaura Anumandal Ganna Krishi Vikas Manch, told a newspaper recently that the farmers have decided to lodge a case against Rudi and JHV Distillery. Besides, a cart procession would be organized to Patna to highlight the plight of the farmers.

Sugarcane production over one acre is estimated to cost at least Rs 10,000. Thus one can only estimate the loss the farmers suffered because of the false assurance.

Reports also said that the Board of Industrial Finance and Restructuring settled the assets and liability of the closed factory to JHV Distillery in 2006.

The state sugarcane minister, Nitish Mishra, concedes that the farmers are in genuine trouble. He also said that the state government has decided to summon the JHV management to find out what had gone wrong with the promise after the Assembly session ends.

There is absolutely no sign of the Marhaura sugar mill re-opening in the near future. Other big players, earlier interested in the revival of Bihar’s sugar industry, have adopted wait and watch attitude.

This is not the first case of the burning of sugarcane in Bihar. Last year farmers of East and West Champaran districts too burnt their crops and even tried to smuggle cart and truck-load of sugarcane to Nepal. They are feeling let down and cheated by the state government.