Rapid Decline In Sugarcane AcreageSugar Production In Uttarakhand May Be Hit,,

Reporter: Aslam Kohra, Pantnagar

Pantnagar. Farmers in Uttarakhand are gradually distancing themselves from sugarcane, a crop long regarded as the most reliable “permanent” cash crop in the state. The trend is particularly visible in Udham Singh Nagar district, where the area under sugarcane cultivation has been consistently shrinking, raising concerns over a possible impact on sugar production in the coming years.From field preparation to transporting cane to the sugar mill, the steadily rising cost of cultivation has become the key reason behind this shift. For an acre producing about 300 quintals of sugarcane, farmers now have to spend nearly ₹83,000. After all expenses, the net income for the farmer comes to only around ₹37,000 per acre, despite year‑round labour and attention to the crop. A few years ago, the same acreage required nearly 25 percent less investment.Increasing input costs for sugarcane sowing, heavy expenditure on protecting the crop from stray and wild animals, and delays in payment of cane dues by sugar mills have all contributed to farmers’ disillusionment with sugarcane cultivation. As a result, where 20–25 years ago large areas of the Tarai tehsils were under sugarcane, the crop is now grown on only a fraction of that land.Farmers are instead turning towards poplar tree plantations as an alternative. Poplar trees mature in about five years, and farmers can also grow wheat and other crops between the rows. This model, they say, can yield net savings of ₹1 lakh to ₹1.25 lakh per year, making it more profitable than sugarcane.Progressive farmer and social worker Dr. Ganesh Upadhyay from Shantipuri says that while the prices of fertilizers, pesticides, diesel and labour are rising sharply, the government is not increasing the sugarcane price in the same proportion. The central government has declared a cane price of ₹355 per quintal, whereas, considering the increased cost of cultivation, it should be at least ₹500 per quintal.He further alleges that the BJP government remains silent on the issue of paying interest on delayed cane payments. According to him, unless there are substantial reforms in cane pricing and payment mechanisms, farmers will continue to abandon sugarcane in favour of alternative crops and tree plantations, which could further reduce the area under sugarcane and adversely affect sugar production in the state.