21 Sindh sugar mills fail to start crushing

Twenty-one out of 27 sugar mills in Sindh had not started crushing despite warning by Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim that action will be taken against those not complying with the government orders.
The sugar mills in Sindh always start their crushing season by October 1, but since last year the mills had been starting sugarcane crushing late.
There has been a controversy among mill-owners on the one hand, and the growers and government on the other, over start of crushing season.
The growers had been demanding of the government to press sugar mill-owners to start crushing in time as they fear that if the crushing was delayed the sowing of any other crop would automatically be delayed causing financial losses to the growers.
In a meeting held on September 28 at the Chief Minister House the owners of sugar mills had promised to start crushing by October 15, but later asked the chief minister to extend the date up to October 20. But as the dateline has reached only seven sugar mills could start lighting their boilers.
Sindh Abadgar Board, Badin President Mohammed Khan Sarejo said that the boiler when lit takes one-week before crushing so in this situation where majority of mills have failed to lit their boilers it was impracticable that they would start mills before the end of October.
Sindh Cane Commissioner Nazar Mohammed Baloch has said that under orders of the provincial government he was bound to file cases against those sugar mills, which could not start crushing by October 20. He said his office had made preparations in this regard.
The cane commissioner office said that Najma Sugar Mills had already started crushing, while on Monday two days before dateline only five sugar mills, Army Sugar Mills Tando Mohammed Khan, Seri Sugar Mills, Khairpur Sugar Mills, Abadgar Sugar Mills and Al-Abbas Sugar Mills, have started their crushing season.
Army Sugar Mills Badin and Ansar Sugar Mills Matli have temporarily lit their chimneys to show that they had started.
The cane commissioner office said that defaulting sugar mills would be prosecuted under Sugar Factories Control Act 1950.