Natore:State Minister for Social Welfare Farzana Sharmin announced that the government is actively working to transform the country's sugar industry into a profitable sector. She made this announcement during the formal inauguration of the sugarcane crushing activities at the North Bengal Sugar Mill in Gopalpur.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the government has implemented several measures to achieve this goal. These measures include increasing the purchasing price of sugarcane to motivate farmers, providing incentives for sugarcane cultivation, and developing new seed varieties and technologies that are being distributed to farmers.
The government is also focusing on diversifying production at North Bengal Sugar Mill and other mills across the nation. Efforts are underway to restart operations at closed mills. Minister Sharmin emphasized the importance of farmers supplying sugarcane to keep the mills operational and noted that the government has ensured fair prices for the growers, which in turn has created numerous employment opportunities in the area.
The inauguration ceremony was presided over by Md. Shamsuzzaman (Suruz), Chairman of the Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation. The North Bengal Sugar Mills Managing Director, Mohammad Farid Hossain Bhuiyan, delivered the welcome speech, revealing that the mill aims to crush 180,000 tons of sugarcane to produce 11,700 tons of sugar this season. The sugar recovery rate is set at 6.5 percent, with crushing activities planned for 125 days.
To further encourage sugarcane cultivation, the government has raised the sugarcane price by Taka 26 per quintal this season. The purchasing price is now Taka 651 per quintal at the mill gate and Taka 637.46 at purchasing centers.