To pay Rs.405 crore to Govt. for 40-year lease

Mandya: Bagalkot District-based Nirani Sugars, owned by current BJP MLA from Bilgi and former Minister Murugesh Nirani, has bagged the lease bid for taking control of the decades-old Pandavapura Sahakara Sakkare Kharkhane Niyamita (PSSKL), popularly known as Pandavapura Sugar Factory located at Pandavapura in Mandya District.

The Sugar Factory, which is considered as the lifeline for thousands of farmers of Mandya district, was established under the Co-operative sector decades ago and had earned the distinction of being the only Co-operative Sugar Factory in the State. But with the passage of time, the Factory ran into losses and as a result, it shut down over fifteen years ago. 

In 2006, the then JD(S)-BJP coalition Government headed by H.D. Kumaraswamy, in a bid to save the Factory, leased it out to Kothari Sugars. But the factory ran into trouble again and was shut after three years. 

In 2010, the then BJP Government headed by Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa handed  it over to the prestigious State-run Mysugar Factory at Mandya and announced a Rs.50 crore special grant for the revival of the Factory. But the Factory continued to incur huge losses, following which it was again shut down three years later. 

In 2014, the Pandavapura Sugar Factory returned to the Co-operative Sector. But it ran into debt trap yet again and subsequently was closed three years later in 2017. Thereafter at a Share-holders meeting held in Jan.2019, it was decided to privatise the Factory and subsequently the Government invited tenders for running the Factory on lease. All the tenders received within the set deadline were opened on June 5, 2020 in the presence of Mandya DC Dr. M.V. Venkatesh and other top officials and Nirani Sugars bagged the tender by quoting the highest price among bidders, to run the factory on lease for a 40-year period.

As per the tender conditions, Nirani Sugars has to pay Rs.405 crore to the Government and also set up a power co-generation plant of 20 MW capacity and establish a distillery unit with a capacity to manufacture 60,000 litres of ethanol per day. The other conditions include augmentation of the existing sugar production capacity of the Factory.

DC Dr. Venkatesh said that the successful bidder Nirani Sugars has been asked to start operations from this year itself.

 Meanwhile, Murugesh Nirani said that he will make honest efforts to serve the farmers of the region by running the factory in a thoroughly professional manner and sought the co-operation of the farming community and all others.