Pune: Maharashtra Sugar Commissioner Slaps ₹11 Crore Fine On Ex-MLA Harshvardhan Patil-Led Factory For Illegal Crushing

Pune: The Shankarraoji Patil Cooperative Sugar Factory, chaired by Harshvardhan Patil -- who is President of the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories and former MLA from Indapur -- has been fined Rs 11 crore for commencing sugarcane crushing before obtaining the required licence. Maharashtra Sugar Commissioner Dr Sanjay Kolte has issued the orders, stating that the fine amount must be paid within seven days.

Meanwhile, the Sugar Commissionerate informed that the Sahakar Shiromani Vasantrao Kale Cooperative Sugar Factory in Pandharpur (Solapur District) has been fined Rs 2.32 crore, and Raigaon Sugar & Power, a private factory in Sangli district, has been fined approximately Rs 40 lakh.

Sugarcane crushing in the state officially began on 1st November. It is mandatory for sugar producers to obtain a crushing licence from the Maharashtra Sugar Commissionerate. Accordingly, factories had been notified to submit complete proposals to secure these licences.

Shankarraoji Patil Cooperative Sugar Factory in Indapur (Pune District) reportedly submitted an online proposal to the Regional Joint Director on 20th October. However, they started crushing operations before the licence was granted. As a result, a fine of Rs 11,21,49,500 has been imposed at a rate of Rs 500 per tonne. The factory had crushed 2,24,299 metric tonnes of sugarcane.

Sahakar Shiromani Vasantrao Kale Cooperative Sugar Factory in Pandharpur sent its proposal via the Regional Joint Director (Sugar), Solapur, on 29th September. However, because they crushed 46,447 metric tonnes of sugarcane prior to receiving the licence, they were fined Rs 2,32,23,500.

Raigaon Sugar & Power in Sangli, the private factory in Kadegaon tehsil, was fined Rs 39,90,380 for crushing 7,980 metric tonnes of sugarcane without a licence.

The Sugar Commissionerate noted that if farmers supply sugarcane to a factory before it receives a licence, the authorities cannot regulate the payment of the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP). As a result, there is a risk that farmers may lose out on receiving the rightful and profitable price for their crop.