New Delhi, July 21: Less than four days after announcing Rs 609 crore aid for cane growers of states having an SAP (state advised price) regime, Centre today decided to come out with a comprehensive package which will include the non-SAP states as well. "There is a consensus on having a package," Food Minister Sharad Yadav said adding it will be on an all-India basis and a formula will now have to be worked out. After a 30-minute meeting with Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, he told the package will be such that there will be balanced approach between those states which fix their own SAP and the rest, ensuring benefit for cane growers from the entire country.
The meeting was also attended by Agriculture Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of State for Agriculture H N Yadav.

Sharad Yadav said the financial implications of the proposed package are yet to be worked out. He said the financial aid aims to bridge the gap between what the farmers actually got in the 2002-03 season and his actual dues based on the Statutory Minimum Price (SMP) fixed by the Centre on 8.5 per cent recovery of sugar from cane.
Official sources said the suggested all-India outlook will not only balloon the financial bill but also complicate the "already tangled" matter further.
Last week after a meeting presided over by the Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Centre had announced a Rs 609 crore package for cane growers of states with the SAP-regime.
This had led to protests from Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu which too demanded their share in the largesse, leading to latest change in stance, they added.
Bureau Report