The Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (KPRS) has called for a district-wide strike in Kalaburagi on February 12 to demand release of sugarcane incentives, clearance of pending sugar mill dues, crop insurance compensation and revised minimum support price for red gram.
Addressing a press conference here on February 7, KPRS district president Sharanabasappa Mamashetty said sugarcane is grown on nearly 45,000 hectares of land in the district and farmers are facing distress due to rising input costs. He alleged that though the state government had announced an incentive of ₹50 per tonne in November last year, no payment had been made so far, though crushing of about 28,000 hectares of cane had been completed.
He said Siddhasiri Ethanol and Power (sugar factory) in Chincholi paid only ₹ 2,550 per tonne initially and another ₹ 150 later, leaving a substantial amount unpaid. According to the norms, the entire payment should be made within 14 days, otherwise interest should be paid to the farmers.
Mr. Mamashetty said farmers have suffered heavy losses due to excessive rainfall. Regarding the compensation announced under the National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force norms, he claimed that there was disparity in the disbursement of relief and urged the government to ensure compensation commensurate with the crop loss suffered by each farmer.
He said around 3,01,000 thousand farmers have paid around ₹99 crore as crop insurance premium covering 3.78 lakh hectares of land. The district president of KPRS urged the government to direct the insurance company to immediately clear the pending claims of distressed farmers.
Apart from the agitation in Kalaburagi town, the farmers will stage protests in their respective taluk headquarters on February 12 and take out a torchlight march from Jagat circle to the deputy commissioners’ office on the same evening.
Published – 08 Feb 2026 18:52 IST
