Vendors’ sweet offer to cane growers

Vellore

The farmers, who are impressed with the rates, might adopt the Punjab planting model as it doubles the yield.

Tamil Nadu farmers association, Vellore district president K Raja who promoted and propagated the new method said, “I have already received enquiries from several cane juice sellers in Chennai whether the crop in my field will be ready for harvest within the next 50 days. Since they bring vehicles to cut the canes, huge amount is saved on that head for me.”

Meanwhile, the Vellore cooperative sugar mill, which plans to start crushing operations in November, had requested Raja to supply cane raised in 3.50 acres on an experimental basis to the mill as they had funded the drip irrigation system for the crop.

Though cane is a water intensive crop, sugar mill officials explained me that cane could also be raised through drip irrigation, said Raja. The 3.50 acres covered by the Punjab pit planting method was expected to yield 80 tonnes per acre as against the normal yield of 40 tonnes, he added.

“I am planning to supply only the crop raised in 1.50 acre through normal method and divert the rest to either cane juice vendors or for jaggery production whichever fetches higher price,” Raja said, adding that “farmers prefer to sell to juice vendors because they offered up to Rs 3,500 a tonne which is nearly Rs 500 more than the State Advisory Price (SAP). Moreover, vendors give instant cash unlike sugar mills where farmers would have to wait for months.”

“We are now waiting for the lockdown to be lifted so that movement to Chennai will not be an issue,” concluded Raja. Farmers in Ranipet are now keen to follow the Punjab method next season, sources added.