Kulkarni Satyanarayana Rao is a sugarcane farmer from Atmakur village in Sadashivapet mandal. He has cultivated the crop in an area of 12 acres, and now, the sugarcane is ready for harvest and transport to the nearby sugar mill called Ganapathi Sugars at Fasalwadi.
Any delay in sugarcane crushing will get him less returns as the crop will lose its moisture content. But, he is in a helpless situation.
Not only Satyanarayana Rao. Several other farmers who are dependent on Ganapathi Sugars for their income are at a loss. Reason: The employees at Ganapathi Sugars are on a strike for the last 20 days demanding wage revision.
Their work will be only for three months during the season. They will be involved in other revenue generating activities in the off season.
About 2.8 lakh metric tonnes of sugarcane will be the output this year in the limits of Ganapathi Sugars. In addition, sugarcane grown in the limits of Trident Sugars located at Zaheerabad is also expected to arrive here for crushing. More than 2 lakh metric tonnes of sugarcane is expected to reach here. Farmers from Andol, Vikarabad and Narsapur area will also bring their sugarcane to Ganapathi.
“We are on the path of agitation for the last 20 days but the management is not responding. We are requesting the management to sign an agreement with employees and commence crushing activity,” said an employee.
“The agreement between workers and the management is purely their own issue and we are in no way connected to it. However, the strike is impacting our lives. Sugarcane production was good this year due to good rains and any delay in crushing will hit the yield. We request the authorities to sort it out at the earliest and commence grinding,” Mr. Satyanarayana Rao said.
Meanwhile, an official said that discussions with the employees and management will be held by the deputy commissioner of labour and the issue would be settled in a day or two.
