Janet Mason 
With the version code of conduct for the Lok Sabha elections likely to kick in soon, the BJP government in Maharashtra, in a contentious circulate, has determined to provide monetary help to a few sugar cooperatives in western and north Maharashtra as well as Marathwada. Most of those sugar cooperatives, which have reportedly run into financial trouble due to persistent drought spells, are managed by politicians. In a kingdom cupboard meeting held on March five, the kingdom authorities authorized the restructuring of loans of 15 sugar cooperatives, of which 13 are managed using BJP and Shiv Sena politicians, including the Minister for Rural Development Pankaja Munde and state BJP President Raosaheb Danve Patil.
The state’s decision is primarily based on the suggestions of a committee headed by using former cooperation secretary of the nation Rajkumar Deora changed into taken despite objections using the Finance Department. Of the 15 companies, 14 owe various monetary establishments Rs 758.88 crore; thirteen owe the country Rs 206 crore, all of them on the way to now be restructured following the choice. The country authorities may be a guarantor to these loans. The defaulters have been given ten years to pay off those dues. Besides this, folks that availed gentle loans to the song of Rs 63.
The move will emerge as costing the country Rs 13.36 crore yearly. 26 crore from the kingdom has been given five years to pay off the quantity. The cooperatives that stand to enjoy the nation’s largesse encompass Rameshwar Sugar Cooperative from Jalana district, which is controlled via Danve-Patil, Baidyanath Sugar Cooperative from Beed district controlled using Munde, RB Patil Sugar cooperative from Sangli that is controlled by BJP MP Sanjay Kaka Patil, Rashtriya Samaj Party’s (RSP) MLA Rahul Kul-run Bheema-Patas Sugar cooperative in Pune (RSP is part of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in the kingdom).
Vasant Dada Sugar Cooperative from Nashik district-run via BJP MLA Rahul Aher and those owned by Paithan Sena MLA Sandipan Bhumre and previous minister and MLA Jaiprakash Mundada from Basmat in Hingoli have also obtained economic help. The handiest politician from the Opposition to locate favor with the Fadnavis government is senior Congress chief and Leader of Opposition in state assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil who runs the BB Tanpure Sugar Cooperative in Rahuri taluka in Ahmednagar.
Interestingly, the selection comes amid rumors that Vikhe-Patil’s son is in touch with the BJP management for contesting the Ahmednagar South Lok Sabha seat. With over 30 lakh farmers engaged in its farming, sugarcane is a politically sensitive crop in Maharashtra. During the Congress-NCP government, of the 30 cabinet ministers, 11controlled one or greater sugar cooperatives in their districts, with a lot of them owning private sugar factories. Under the current Sena-BJP authorities, the keep of sugar cooperatives on national politics has decreased; however, it no longer diminished. Even in the gift cabinet, out of 22 cabinet ministers, five control sugar cooperatives in their districts or private sugar factories.
