Keeping in view of Holi, the Centre on Tuesday fixed sugar sale quota at 24.5 lakh tonne for March in the open market. It has also allocated sugar quota for sale to each of the 524 mills in the country. Recently, mills were also advised to go for advance booking of sugar sales to bulk consumers.
According to the Ministry of Food and Consumers’ Affairs, the increase (in quota for March) is attributable to various factors.
“There is a pattern of high sales/dispatches around this time of the Year. Mills are allowed to sell sugar at a minimum selling price of Rs 31 per kg. The rate was increased recently from Rs 29 per kg to help mills realise maximum revenue and clear cane price arrears of farmers”, it said.
The Government has been fixing sugar quota for mills since June 2018 and implementing the Sugar Price (Control) Order 2018 in order to manage surplus production in the country and to stabilise sugar prices with a view to clear cane price arrears of farmers.
Sugarcane arrears to farmers have crossed Rs 20,000 crore in the current marketing year 2018-19 (October-September).