MAHARASHTRA-Bane of Mushrooming Sugar Factories

MAHARASHTRA Bane of Mushrooming Sugar Factories H M Desarda CURRENTLY there is a political rat race on for putting up co-operative sugar factories in Maharashtra. There are already 96 sugar units operating in the State. And as of now 36 new units have been granted licences and proposals for as many as 130 units have been forwarded for sanction to Delhi and are awaiting clearance. Besides, a number of existing units are going in for expansion of capacity. The capacity of the newly sanctioned units being 2,500 tonnes a day, the net addition to capacity would be far greater than indicated by the number of new units. Chief minister Sharad Pawar has announced that the State government will provide Rs 360 crore to the new sugar units which have been accorded sanction, at the rate of Rs 10 crore per unit. The State Co-operative Bank would make the necessary loans available to these units. In fact, the State Co-operative Bank provides finance also for subscription to the share capital of the factories.