Name: B. Shyamsundar & K.P. Venkateshagowda
Country: India

Year: 2026
Volume: Volume-16, Issue-1 (Special Issue: March 2026)
Page Number: 184-194
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19184164

ABSTRACT
Sugar cane growers are not happy with the price announced by the state governments. They allege that the price does not even cover the cost of cultivation of sugar cane. They accuse the state governments of colluding with the sugar millers, who, according to them, fleece the gullible sugar cane growers. For the 2024-25 season, following intense farmer protests in North Karnataka (Belagavi, Bagalkot, and Vijayapura), the Karnataka government intervened to fix a state-mandated price. The effective mandated price for many regions was set at ₹3,300 per tonne (including a ₹100 "additional" component mediated by the state, where the state and mills contribute ₹50 each). In fact, a representative of Karnataka’s farming community alleged for a higher price of INR 3500 on each tonne of sugar cane supplied by the farmer citing higher production and harvesting costs compared to neighbouring Maharashtra. But sugar millers have their own sob story to tell. They complain that the price tha