M A I N   N E W S

Cane growers elated as Centre invites comments on Rangarajan report
Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 8
Sugarcane growers see a victory in Central Government seeking comments from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Uttarakhand on the recommendations of the Rangarajan committee that had the farmers from the five sugarcane growing states of the North on a warpath.

The UP government’s yesterday’s announcement of state advisory price (SAP) in the range of Rs 275-290 (a 15-16 per cent jump from the previous year figure) has also led them to believe that the committee’s report on sugar sector deregulation is now on the “back burner”.

A letter from Food and Public Distribution Joint Secretary T Jacob to the Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan confirms that the Food Ministry has invited suggestions from the state governments on the recommendations of the committee and that no recommendation (of the Rangarajan Committee) has been taken up for implementation so far. Food Minister KV Thomas has said the government will take a call on the report by December. The committee on de-regulation of sugar sector under the chairmanship of Dr C Rangarajan had in October presented a road map for phased decontrol of the Rs 80,000-crore industry.