Maharashtra Cooperation Dept Drops 5 Cooperative Sugar Mills Associated With Opposition Party Leaders, Adds BJP-NCP Instead For ₹487 Crore Award

The Maharashtra Cooperation Department has dropped five cooperative sugar mills associated with the opposition party leaders from its list of margin fund beneficiaries and added in their place those linked to the politicians of the ruling BJP and NCP for an award of Rs 487 crore funds.

This decision was made during a cabinet meeting held soon after the Lok Sabha election results were declared.

The ruling alliance of Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP managed to win only 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state out of the total 48, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) performed better by bagging 31 seats.

The new additions to the list are Shetkari Sahakari Sakhar Karkhana in Ausa tehsil of Latur district, Vishwasrao Naik Cooperative Sugar Mill in Sangli district, Padmabhushan Krantiveer Dr Nagnath Nayakawadi Hutatma Kisan Ahir Cooperative Sugar Mill in Sangli, Ashok Cooperative Sugar Mill in Shrirampur tehsil of Ahmednagar district and Shri Vitthal Cooperative Sugar Mill in Pandharpur tehsil if Solapur district.

The margin money funds will be disbursed by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) through the Maharashtra government.

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the state government offered its guarantee to several cooperative sugar mills to make margin funds worth Rs2,265 crore available. Some of these sugar mills were controlled by the MLAs and leaders belonging to the opposition parties.

The opposition parties criticised the decision, calling it an attempt to lure their leaders into aligning with the ruling dispensation.

As per the revised list, Latur-based sugar mill controlled by BJP MLA Abhimanyu Pawar is expected to receive Rs18.84 crore, while a mill in Sangli, controlled by Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, is set to receive Rs121 crore.

Abhijeet Patil, who already controls four sugar mills, recently gained control of the Shri Vitthal Cooperative Sugar Mill in Pandharpur and has shown political ambitions. He plans to contest from the Pandharpur assembly constituency. His mill will receive Rs219 crore, the highest among the five sugar mills.

The Vishwasrao Naik Cooperative Sugar Mill in Walwa tehsil of Sangli is controlled by Shirala MLA Mansing Naik, who has been close to NCP (SP) state president Jayant Patil.

According to political observers, "Naik must have given clear signals of his allegiance with the NDA and earned Rs53 crore in the form of margin amount."

Although the Ashok Cooperative Sugar Mill is in Shrirampur, most of the sugarcane cultivators attached to it are from the neighbouring Nevasa assembly constituency. According to the government order, the mill will receive Rs 75 crore.

Former cabinet minister and MLA Shankarrao Gadakh currently represents it and has already declared their association with Shiv Sena (UBT).