OWNERSHIP-WISE FRP PAYMENT PERFORMANCE OF SUGAR FACTORIES IN MAHARASHTRA DURING THE 2024‑25 SEASON

Abstract

The study examines the actual status of Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) payments and arrears to sugarcane growers by sugar factories in Maharashtra during the 2024‑25 crushing season. Using factory‑wise data from the official FRP report covering all 184 operating factories, a dataset was constructed to compute total FRP payable, actual payments, arrears and the percentage of FRP paid, and to compare these indicators across ownership types, namely co‑operative and private factories. The results show that co‑operative factories have an average FRP payable of 54.43 crore rupees per unit, with 43.04 crore rupees actually paid and 11.41 crore rupees outstanding, whereas private factories report a slightly higher average FRP payable of 55.31 crore rupees but a much lower average payment of 33.85 crore rupees and higher arrears of 16.62 crore rupees; consequently, the mean FRP payment ratio stands at 60.93 per cent in the co‑operative sector against 50.20 per cent in the private sector. Independent sample t‑tests indicate that the difference in mean FRP arrears between ownership groups is not statistically significant at the 5 per cent level (p = 0.0887), while the difference in the mean percentage of FRP paid is statistically significant at the 10 per cent level (p = 0.0681), suggesting that co‑operative sugar factories exhibit relatively better FRP payment performance than private factories in Maharashtra.