Maharastra bans crushing Karnataka cane

BELGAUM: The Maharashtra Government has banned its sugar factories from crushing sugar cane grown in Belgaum and Khanapur taluks of Karnataka.

The factories have been warned that a fine of Rs 250 per tonne will be imposed on them if the ban was violated and that the vehicles used for transporting cane will be seized.Maharashtra has taken a decision in this regard after verifying the facts tabled by the committee led by Prof N D Patil, which had asked the state to crush cane grown by Marathi linguistic farmers in Belgaum and Khanapur taluks, as factories in Karnataka were refusing to crush cane grown by the Marathis.

The Maharashtra Government, first believed the words told by the committee and had asked the Marathi cane growers in Karnataka to send cane to the factories in Maharashtra before December 10, 2007. However, after counter-checking the facts, Maharashtra realised the truth and had imposed the ban on crushing the cane.The committee had stated that Marathi linguistic farmers grow more than 3 lakh tonnes of cane every year, of which most of the quantity goes waste without being crushed in Karnataka factories.

However, Maharashtra has asked its factories to take up cane grown in other states only after crushing cane grown in Maharashtra.

MES observes Hutatma Divas

MES leaders paying floral tributes to the martyrs at the Hutatma Chowk, in Belgaum.

BELGAUM: Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), the pro-Maharashtrian organisation which demands merger of Belgaum and other Marathi-speaking areas of Karnataka with Maharashtra, observed Hutatma Divas (Martyrs’ Day), here on Thursday.

Hundreds of MES activists paid homage to the people who were killed in the ‘border agitation’ in front of the Kaveri Cold Drink House, here on Thursday morning.

Four among the agitators of MES were killed when the police opened fire at the Hutatma Chowk and one was killed at Nippani, on January 17 in 1956.

MES is observing January 17 every year as Hutatma Divas. The MES activists put floral garlands on the portraits’ of the martyrs and observed two minutes silence at the Chowk. Business establishments adjoining to the Chowk area were closed down for some time.

Former MLA Narayanrao Tarale, Desai, Chavan and others addressed the people. Later, they marched on the streets of Ramdev Galli, Khadebazar, Ganapati Galli, Maruti Galli before reaching back to the Chowk.

MES leaders Deepak Dalvi, former mayor Vijay More, former deputy mayor Prakash Shirolkar were present.