The Tamil Nadu government will allocate ₹250 crore to provide a special incentive of ₹215 per metric tonne (MT), over and above the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) announced by the Union government, to farmers who have supplied sugarcane to sugar mills for the 2023-2024 crushing season.
While presenting the Agriculture Budget for 2024-25 in the Assembly, Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare M.R.K. Panneerselvam said that the enhanced special incentive would benefit 1.3 lakh sugarcane farmers across the State. The incentive, earlier, was ₹195 per MT over and above the FRP.
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The government also announced a slew of measures to improve the 30 sugar mills: 13 co-operative, two public and 15 private across the State, that are presently operating. Machinery operating in sugarcane milling stations will be integrated and automated at a cost of ₹3.6 crore in Perambalur, Cheyyar, Vellore, Salem, Madurantakam, and in Subramania Siva Sugar Mills, the Minister said.
A new rotor shaft assembly for 18 MW power turbines will be procured at a cost of ₹6.31 crore to avoid the stoppages at the Chengalrayan Co-operative Sugar Mill. Anion and cation exchangers will be installed in the water treatment plant at Chengalrayan, Vellore, Cheyyar, Arignar Anna, Perambalur, Dharmapuri and MRK Sugar Mills at a cost of ₹1.39 crore. Mill drive power control units would be procured at a cost of ₹1.10 crore for the MRK and Cheyyar co-operative sugar mills.
To improve the efficiency of sugar mills, ₹12.40 crore would be utilised from the Sugar Mills Fund.
An allocation of ₹7.92 crore from Union and State government funds will be given towards providing new sugarcane varieties, resistant to pests and disease-reducing cultivation costs, expanding sugarcane area under cultivation and increasing sugar recovery, the Minister said.
