Lucknow / Nov 30, 2020
Amid the sugar sector volatility resulting in market price fluctuations and farmers’ arrears, the Uttar Pradesh government has liberalised the licensing regime of rural based ‘khandsari’ plants.
This is aimed at not only promoting local entrepreneurship, but also diverting the excess sugarcane harvest to the state khansari segment during bumper seasons of the cash crop.
Khandsari is basically unrefined/raw sugar derived from thickened sugarcane syrup. It has higher molasses content and is considered healthier than the refined and chemically treated white sugar. It is widely used as a sweetener agent for making sweets and in other food items in the rural hinterland.
According to UP sugarcane commissioner, Sanjay Bhoosreddy, the government had issued 240 new licenses to khandsari units with collective capacity of 5,865 tonnes crushed per day (TCD) of sugarcane.
The operation of 240 khandsari units will provide about 42,000 direct and indirect employment along with a capital investment of Rs 1,100 crore in the rural areas.
These khandsari plants will add crushing capacity equivalent to 11 sugar mills. They will generate new employment opportunities and additional income in rural areas which will further strengthen the rural economy.
For getting a new license, an online application could be submitted over portal www.upkhandsari.in. The competent authority will take a decision on an online application within 100 hours of submission.
During the last crushing season 2019-20, 56 new khandsari units were operated and so far 117 new units were operational in the current crushing season 2020-21. While 11 licenses were issued by the department through the offline mode, 229 new licenses were generated online.
At one point, there were almost 5,000 khandsari units operating in the countryside of UP, however, their numbers dwindled considerably down the line with 161 of the total 1,078 licensed khandsari plants operational in the 2017-18 crushing season.
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