Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis met Union Minister Amit Shah in Delhi and sought an increase in the minimum selling price of sugar along with higher onion procurement.
Fadnavis, accompanied by Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Sunetra Pawar, raised concerns over stagnant sugar prices despite rising costs for sugarcane farmers. The Fair and Remunerative Price for cane has risen 26 per cent to Rs 3,550 per tonne, yet the minimum selling price of sugar remains at Rs 31 per kg.
The state requested an increase in the sugar minimum selling price to Rs 41 per kg and higher ethanol allocation for mills. Current ethanol allotment stands at 116 crore litres against a capacity of 424 crore litres.
The Centre agreed to procure onions directly from farmers and to raise the target from two lakh metric tonnes to 10 lakh metric tonnes. It also accepted a request to revise insurance norms for mango farmers and introduce mechanised grading to reduce exploitation in markets.