Farmers in Belagavi district have blocked sugar transport and locked warehouses, demanding the Union government raise the Minimum Selling Price (MSP) to ₹60 per kg. The protest, ongoing for over a month, resumed after the Centre failed to revise the price in a decade. Farmers insist on this hike to support a sugarcane price of ₹5,500 per tonne, threatening to halt factory operations if demands are not met.
Protesters targeted several facilities, including Satish Sugars in Mudalagi and Vishwanath Sugar Factory in Bellad Bagewadi. Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha leader Chunappa Pujeri stated that while the primary demand is ₹60, farmers would accept a minimum of ₹50. He noted that factories have assured a sugarcane price of ₹4,500 per tonne if this adjustment is made. Although a central panel led by Ramesh Chand is scheduled to visit Bengaluru to meet stakeholders, Pujeri warned that the group remains unconvinced by the committee’s intentions and will continue the blockade until the MSP and Fair and Remunerative Price are revised.
