Following the recent meeting with Shah, Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar speaking to reporters in Pune said that the Union government was ready to support ailing mills to restart crushing season. “ The sugar mill director board or the administrators will have to draft the proposals and submit it to the government,” said Pawar.

Deputy Chief Minister added that Amit Shah is keen that there should not be a single sugar mill in Maharashtra that is not producing ethanol. Recently Shah while speaking in Pune had said that “Huge funding is available under various schemes for co-operative societies which can be utilised for setting up distilleries. Sugar mills in the State should avail of the loan facility”.

Pawar said that the State government was keen that all sugar mills have ethanol production facilities and now with Shah himself extending a helping hand, mills in the State will take positive steps in this direction. “National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) is ready to help sugar mills,” said Pawar.     

Many co-operative sugar mills in the State have approached the NCDC seeking support to revive mills. Those who have approached the NCDC include former Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leaders who are now with the BJP. The State government has assured to give a guarantee to the loan proposals submitted by these mills.

Ethanol Loans

Meanwhile, under the ‘scheme for extending financial assistance to sugar mills for augmentation of ethanol production capacity’, the Centre has extended soft loans through banks to the mills for setting up new distilleries/ expansion of existing distilleries and installation of incineration boilers or installation of any method as approved by Central Pollution Control Board for Zero Liquid Discharge. The government bears interest subvention for the loan disbursed. The Union government has decided to extend the timeline for disbursement of loans up to September 30 in respect of all the schemes notified during 2018-21.

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