The UP chief minister failed to explain why she refused imported raw sugar being offered by the Centre despite a steep fall in production and cane cultivation area in her own state.
Lashing out at the Centre for blaming the states for price rise, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati on Thursday charged the UPA government with working under the influence of capitalists and said its polices were helping “blackmarketeers and hoarders”.
“Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar is only trying to shift blame… the Congress and its government is only helping the rich while the poor have been forced to bear the brunt of their lopsided policies,” she asserted.
“If the Centre does not take swift measures, the BSP will launch a country-wide agitation,” Mayawati announced at a press conference.
The UP chief minister failed to explain why she refused imported raw sugar being offered by the Centre despite a steep fall in production and cane cultivation area in her own state.
The Dalit leader has been accused of pandering to her political constituency in western UP, particularly the over 40 lakh sugarcane cultivators.
Sugar production in UP this time is expected to be much lower than previous years. But the UP government has refused to pick up about nine lakh tonne of imported raw sugar lying at the ports despite repeated pleas from the agriculture ministry. The stock is now being diverted to other states.
A UP Sugar Corporation official pointed out that the state’s annual consumption of sugar is about 50 lakh tonne whereas the sugar production expected this year is only around 39 lakh tonne.
“Allowing sugar mills to import raw sugar and refine it is the only remedy left to meet this shortfall,” he said. However, this would enrage the sugarcane farmers who form a major pressure group with a decisive role in elections in western UP.
At present, with the ban in place, they are reaping huge benefits with the sugar mills compelled to pay even higher than the Rs170 per quintal SAP (state advisory price) fixed by the state government. This is already much higher than the rate of Rs129 declared by the Centre.
Even though Mayawati has been raving about her government taking strict action against hoarders, the situation on the ground is very different. Reason: traders also form a vote bank of the BSP.
Cong strikes back
“The UP chief minister does not have the interest of the common man at heart. The Centre has announced several measures to control prices and if any CM tries to put an obstacle in these steps, it amounts to working against the common man,” party spokesperson Manish Tewari said.
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