Maharashtra Meeting polls: For many sugarcane cutters, voting means dropping a day’s wages | Pune Information

Gardhe, who’s a muggadam (middle-man) employed with Bhaurao Chavan SSK in Nanded, admitted that this meant the lack of a day’s pay however felt it was their responsibility to train their proper.

“There are round 200 folks from our village. Nearly half of them went for voting,” he added.

The difficulty of voting rights for cane cutters had grow to be a serious bone of rivalry in Maharashtra’s sugar trade because the sugar commissionerate had not issued permission for crushing until the final second.

Formally, the sugarcane crushing season was to begin on November 15 however with the Election Fee of India (ECI) fixing the polls on November 20, the query of voting turned an issue for cane cutters.

Not like Uttar Pradesh, sugar mills in Maharashtra organize for the harvest and transportation of cane with the cane cutters primarily coming from Beed, Nanded, Ahmednagar, Yavatmal, Amravati, and Nandurbar areas.

Of the 12.5 lakh cane cutters, round 5 lakh are from Beed.

Positioned in Kallam taluka of Dharashiv district (erstwhile Osmanabad), Pure Sugars and Allied Industries (NSAI) organized for the journey of their cane cutters from Beed and close by areas.

Thus Ankush Jadhav, a muggadam from the realm, mentioned he took his 20 labourers to vote within the village.

“Whereas this does translate right into a day’s wage loss, voting is essential,” he mentioned.

Nonetheless, Jeewan Rathod, chairman of the Maharashtra Sugarcane Cutters and Transporters Affiliation, mentioned that round 60 per cent of the cane cutters haven’t been capable of return to their villages to vote.

“Those that are employed in mills close by got here again, however those that are in faraway areas haven’t,” he identified.