SANGUEM
Sanguem’s sugarcane farmers have strongly opposed any move by the government to allocate land belonging to the Sanjivani Sugar Factory for an IIT or any non-agricultural project.
Farmers from remote villages in the region warned of legal action and mass protests if the government proceeds without addressing their long-standing grievances.
Harshad Shankar Prabhudessai, a farmer from Netravali, said recent media reports about setting up an IIT at Sanjivani’s Usgao land have sparked deep concern. He stressed that the land is collectively owned by sugarcane growers across Goa, who are shareholders of the factory.
“The government cannot decide on this land without our consent,” he said, also highlighting the state’s failure to set up a promised ethanol plant after the factory’s closure ” a move that has left farmers without livelihood support.
Echoing this, Chanda Velip, a young farmer, accused the government of pushing sugarcane cultivators into financial distress, likening their situation to that of mining dependents after the sector’s sudden shutdown. He warned that any attempt to hand over the land without resolving farmer issues would trigger widespread protests.
Veteran cultivators Bostiao Simoes from Kevona Rivona and Kusta Velip from Curdi Wadem recalled that the Sanjivani Sugar Factory was established by the late Bahusaheb Bandodkar for the welfare of Goan farmers. “The land belongs to us, not the government,” Simoes said.
Kusta Velip criticized the state for sidelining agriculture and vowed to oppose any decision to repurpose the land. He warned that allocating it to an IIT without consent would be met with fierce resistance from the farming community.
