K'taka CM to announce benefits for sugarcane growers tomorrow

Bangalore, Apr 11 (UNI) The Karnataka Government will announce benefits such as subsidy and exemption of purchase tax to provide relief to sugarcane growers across the State at a meeting, to be held in the presence of Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy here tomorrow.

Intervening during a discussion in the Assembly on the problems being faced by sugarcane growers in the State, Mr Kumaraswamy said people's representatives and farmers had been invited to attend the meeting to discuss their problems. The Government would consider providing subsidy to the sugarcane growers and explore possibilities of exempting purchase tax to ease their burden, he added.

Earlier, members, cutting across party lines, focussed on the problems of the sugarcane growers. Janata Dal (Secular) member B R Patil, who raised the issue, referred to the suicide bid by eight farmers, unable to bear the loss, and demanded that the Government initiate firm action to safeguard the interests of the farming community.

UNI