• Vitthal Pujari (35), a marginal farmer from Gangapur near Latur, was banking on Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh’s Vikas and Manjra Co-operative Sugar factories to buy the sugarcane grown on his 1.25 -acre farm to repay his loan of Rs 50,000. The factory did not pick up his cane for crushing. He committed suicide on March 20.

• Nagnath Aradwad (32) of Wanjarwada village in Ahmedpur taluka hanged himself to death on March 25 after the Indo-Sugar factory controlled by Deshmukh’s son, Amit, did not crush his cane. Unable to service debts worth over Rs 1.50 lakh, he committed suicide.

Both these farmer suicides, among the seven officially counted this year, are in the prosperous sugar-growing regions of Marathwada and western Maharashtra where a glut in production is leaving farmers with huge stocks of uncrushed cane.

The Marathwada region is among the worst-affected in the state which has had a record production of 751 lakh metric tons (LMT) of cane. And the 11 local factories are unable to cope with this. So far in Latur, 33 LMT of cane has been crushed — 8 LMT remains, of which around 3.95 LMT may be left uncrushed by May end.

Prices have already dipped to around Rs 1,150 per quintal, compared to around Rs 1,700 last year. Next year promises to be worse, with an expected cane production of around 900 LMT.

The glut has forced factories to pick and choose farmers whose cane is to be crushed. Often, caste and politics play a role in the decision. For instance, Pujari’s family members — he has left behind a wife, two children and 75-year-old mother — claim he had asked Vikas and Manjira Cooperative Sugar factories to buy his cane. But they refused saying he wasn’t a cooperative member.

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