The Phagwara administration on Sunday sealed the Golden Sandhar Sugar Mill in Phagwara over outstanding sugarcane payments amounting to Rs 27.74 crore for the 2021-22 crushing season, bringing the long-pending dispute between the mill management and sugarcane growers back into focus.
The action came amid mounting pressure from the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Doaba), which had given the Punjab Government November 18 as the deadline to resolve the payment issue, warning of intensified agitation if the growers’ dues were not cleared.
The sealing operation commenced in the presence of the officials whose names were recorded in the official attendance sheet.
The whole operation was videographed to maintain an official record of the proceedings and the condition of the property and equipment inside the mill. Machinery was found installed inside the premises, according to the inventory recorded during the videography. The inventory also included three trucks; three conveyor machines; four tractors; one agricultural machine; five Bolero vehicles and one water tanker.
Cane Commissioner Taranjit Gill had alleged that the mill had undertaken crushing operations during the 2025-26 season without obtaining the requisite licence and had could not clear the outstanding payments despite repeated interventions. He also pointed towards frequent changes in the mill’s ownership and management as a factor complicating the process of fixing responsibility for the liabilities.
