Karnataka’s Sugar Minister Shivanand Patil. Photo credit: File photo
Sugar Minister Shivanand Patil has come under pressure from members of the Karnataka Assembly to crack down on sugar mills resisting the government’s establishment of a weigh bridge in light of farmers’ complaints about mills cheating them on cane weight.
During a discussion on the problems in North Karnataka, Mr. Patil, who intervened when Congress member Laxman Savadi was speaking, acknowledged that private sugar mills do not allow setting up of weighbridges inside the factory premises. “If they don’t allow it, we can’t install the weighbridge,” he said.
“You (the minister) cannot say ‘we can’t install it’. You are the government. You have the power to seize the factory.”R. Ashok Leader of Opposition, Karnataka
Barring Mr. Patil’s statement expressing incompetence, Mr. Savadi said that the mills would come on line if the power supply to the mills was disconnected. “Call a meeting of the Ministry of Sugar, Weights and Measures and Power and take a decision to cut off electricity to industries that are resisting the installation of a weighbridge. The government has allowed this industry to operate and the government can control it.”
Leader of Opposition R. Ashok said, “You (minister) cannot say ‘we can’t install it’. You are the government. You have the power to seize the factory.”
Magadi Congress member HC Balakrishna also took exception and asked what was stopping the government from taking action against non-cooperative industries.
During the discussion, the minister informed that the government has released money for the installation of 12 weighbridges, which will be managed by either farmers’ unions or FPOs, and that tenders have been announced. “To encourage farmers to provide information about cheating on the scale, we kept a cash reward of ₹5,000. But the farmers did not submit the information.”
Earlier, Mr. Savadi had said that if the minimum support price of sugar is not revised, sugar mills in the cooperative sector will be forced to close down. “The Center can take over sugar mills in the cooperative sector. We cannot compete with private sugar mills under the current MSP for sugar and FRP for sugarcane.”
Janata Dal (Secular) member representing Gurmitkal Sharanagouda Kandakur urged the government to create a separate budget for north Karnataka. “Involve one sector every year for targeted development. Education, health, infrastructure and irrigation could take five years to develop the region.”
Published – 17 Dec 2025 10:02 IST
