Lucknow, Nov 22 (IANS) Reaching out to sugarcane farmers in the state, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati has decided to continue the ban on import of raw sugar till the sugarcane crushing in mills in the state is over, an official said Sunday.

The chief minister has also decided to convene a meeting to raise the prices for sugarcane crop.

‘The ban on import of raw sugar will continue until the crushing is completed in the sugar mills across the state,’ state Cabinet Secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh told a press conference here Sunday.

He said: ‘Taking note of the demand of sugarcane growers for a higher sugarcane price, the chief minister has directed all district magistrates and divisional commissioners to convene tripartite meetings with sugar mill owners and cane growers to settle a price higher than the state advised price (SAP) fixed by the state government.’

While appreciating the gesture of the Uttar Pradesh Sugarmill Owners Association to offer Rs.15 a quintal higher than the SAP of Rs.165 and Rs.170 fixed by the state government, the cabinet secretary said: ‘Still, our endeavour would be to ensure the wellbeing of the state’s 40 lakh sugarcane growers.’

‘Sugar mills have already purchased about 6.5 lakh tonnes of sugarcane, of which 20-30 percent has already been crushed.’

Reiterating that the state government had announced an unprecedented hike of Rs.25 a quintal over its last year’s SAP, Singh also sought to point out how, ignoring the plight of farmers, the central government had kept its Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) as low as Rs.129 a quintal.

‘The Uttar Pradesh chief minister has already proved her concern for farmers by persuading the prime minister to withdraw a central government ordinance, whereby states were required to pay the difference, in case their SAP was higher than the FRP announced by the centre,’ he added.