Chennai, Dec 6 Delta farmers have called on the Tamil Nadu government to revise this year's Pongal gift package by including mould jaggery (achu vellam) and supplying two stems of edible sugarcane instead of one.
They argue that such a move would both support traditional farm livelihoods and ensure a more culturally authentic festival package for the more than 2.32 crore ration card holders across the State.
Every year, the government distributes a Pongal package containing rice, sugar, and a single piece of sugarcane. Farmers say the continued inclusion of white sugar, instead of locally produced jaggery, has deprived thousands of small jaggery units of crucial seasonal income.
With jaggery production being a labour-intensive cottage industry, they believe procuring directly from local units would boost rural employment and sustain traditional manufacturing practices. Farmers are equally concerned about the procurement of sugarcane.
They alleged that although the government allocates Rs 35 per sugarcane piece to contractors, middlemen with political backing procure the cane from growers for just Rs 13–15. This wide gap, they say, results in severe losses for cultivators who have already been grappling with fluctuating input costs, labour shortages, and unpredictable weather.
"The current procurement system pushes farmers into a loss. The government must intervene to ensure a fair price," said Sambantham, a sugarcane grower from Umayalpuram in Thanjavur district.
He appealed to the government to procure sugarcane directly from cultivators this Pongal season and to fix the price at Rs 45 per piece.
"This would allow us to earn at least a reasonable profit for our labour,” he said, adding that payment should be made directly to farmers' bank accounts to prevent malpractices and to ensure transparency. Farmers have pointed out that increasing the supply to two canes per family would both meet demand and help thousands of cane growers across Thanjavur, Tiruchi, Ariyalur, Nagapattinam, and Mayiladuthurai, where large areas are under sugarcane cultivation.
They stressed that the Pongal festival, celebrated as a thanksgiving to the Sun and the harvest, must also become an opportunity for the State to reinforce its support for the agricultural community.
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