LAHORE: The Punjab zone of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) is demanding the government to provide interest-free loans at a three- or five-year term to safeguard sugarcane growers in the province.
According to PSMA Punjab Chairman Javed Kiyani, without government loans, payments to sugarcane growers of around Rs40 billion would be stuck by the end of the crushing season.
PSMA officials said that after Sindh High Court’s decision, the provincial government is paying Rs12 per maund to sugarcane growers of Sindh as a contribution; hence Punjab government should also follow the court’s decision to protect the grower’s interest.
Kiyani said that SHC, in a constitutional petition with the concurrence of all stakeholders, concluded that sugarcane price for the season 2014-15 would be Rs172 per 40 kg in Sindh, out of which the government has undertaken to contribute Rs12 for onward payment to sugarcane growers.
