[?]ert Close-down

[?]Usori

[?]LL [?]owers Hope To [?]ert Close-down

From Our Suva Correspondent DP representatives of the Colonial Sugar Refining Co. Ltd. met leaders of the Rewa district wers’ associations prior to a re meeting of Indian growers at isori on January 21. The growers t to consider the effect of the ;ing of Nausori mill, the CSR’s est mill in Fiji. ’he Company announced on Jan y 10 that the Nausori Mill would se down at the end of the 1959 shing season, owing to unprofit e operations over recent years, I the poor prospects for the ure. ( PIM , January, p. 23).

Vhen the announcement was first ie, the cane growers did not seem realise it fully, but the full im ;ations of the closing of the Mill, it affects them, now seems to be icing in, and the majority of cane wers are very concerned. ,t the meeting, Mr. Vishnu Deo, ior elected Indian MLC, and Pre ;nt of the Farmers’ Association the Southern District, men led the new areas that would be liable for cane planting in the vani district, Tailevu and along new road now being opened up rn Sawani to Vunidawa. le said that he had asked Mr.

G. Carver, one of the Company’s cutives, who was then in Fiji, the cane growers could grow re cane during the coming three rs transition period. Mr. Carver i replied that the growers could nt as much as they liked, but the company did not plan to ;e cane after 1959. Mr. Carver :ed that Malabar variety of le be restricted to low-lying 1 badly drained lands and that jeter varieties be grown in other as. £r. Vishnu Deo said that with re production, better drainage, i with new cane areas in sight, : Nausori Mill could be kept go-

Tjians Blamed For Mill

Shut-Down

Y not growing enough cane and allowing their lands, which had reverted to native reserves, to w only weeds, the Fijians con futed in part to the closing of ! Nausori Mill. this was said at a meeting of le growers at Naiisori on luary 19 by Mr. P. V. Hunt Sila, airman of the Tailevu, Rewa and itasiri Fijian Cane Growers’ ion. le said the Fijians did not have y justification for their “moans )ut land shortage.” le said they had failed in their

duty to the Colony by leaving their lands idle.

“Most of the lands returned to us after the leases expired, and set aside for native reserves, are now covered in weeds,” Sila said. He believed that if all canefarmers now pulled together and doubled or redoubled their sugar cane produc tion there would be no need to close the mill.