Ahmednagar Sugarcane Cooperative Pravara Sugar Maharashtra

Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra is the birthplace of the cooperative sugarcane and sugar industry model that transformed rural western Maharashtra — the Pravara Cooperative Sugar Factory (1950, established by Vitthalrao Vikhe Patil) was India's first cooperative sugar mill, which created a model replicated by 200+ cooperative sugar factories across Maharashtra and gave sugar cooperative leaders like Sharad Pawar their political base. The district's Bhima and Pravara rivers support extensive sugarcane cultivation, and the sugar cooperative system provides sugarcane pricing, crushing, and byproduct ethanol revenue to member farmer-shareholders. Ahmednagar district also borders Shirdi — the most visited pilgrimage site in Maharashtra (Sai Baba shrine) — which draws 100,000 pilgrims daily.