The Bihar government's Sugarcane Industry Department has launched a special campaign in the Riga Sugar Mill area with the aim of increasing sugarcane production and doubling farmers' income. On Saturday, Sugarcane Commissioner Anil Kumar Jha held a coordination meeting with departmental officials, agriculture department personnel, and the sugar mill management to discuss strategies for boosting sugarcane output and improving farmers' economic status.

During the meeting, it was revealed that in the last crushing season, the Riga Sugar Mill processed only 17 lakh quintals of sugarcane, whereas the mill requires 50 to 60 lakh quintals for smooth operation. Currently, sugarcane is cultivated on approximately 20,000 acres in the district.

Commissioner Jha stated that if sugarcane production reaches 30 lakh quintals, farmers' accounts would receive approximately 120 crore rupees. Furthermore, if the sugarcane cultivation area doubles in the next season, farmers could potentially benefit by up to 240 crore rupees.

Farmers were also informed about various subsidy schemes, including the Sugarcane Bud Nursery and Agricultural Machinery Bank schemes. Under these initiatives, individual farmers are eligible for up to 45 percent subsidy, while farmer groups can receive up to 80 percent. The Commissioner also directed officials to disseminate the successful farming models of Majorganj farmers, Vinay Singh and Ashok Kumar, to other cultivators.

The meeting was attended by Assistant Director Deepak Kumar, District Agriculture Officer Shantanu Kumar, Riga Sugar Mill GM B.K. Dwivedi, and other key officials. Nagendra Prasad Singh, President of the Sugarcane Producers Association, welcomed the department's farmer-centric initiative.