The government today allocated 19.25 lakh tonne of sugar for sale in the open market and through ration shops for this month, which is about 1.5 lakh tonne more than the July quota.
Out of total sugar quota for August, the food ministry has earmarked 17.03 lakh tonne for sale in the open market and the remaining 2.22 lakh tonne for distribution through ration shops, an official statement said.
In July, the ministry had allocated 17.72 lakh tonne -- 15.60 lakh tonne for sale in the open market and 2.12 lakh tonnes for ration shops.
"This quantity of 19.25 lakh tonne is sufficient to meet the internal demand of sugar for the month of August 2011," it added. The ministry asked the mills to sell the entire non-levy sugar (meant for sale in open market) by end of this month.
Sugar production of India, the world's second largest producer and biggest consumer, is estimated at 24.2 million tonne during 2010-11 season (October-September) as against nearly 19 million tonne in the previous season.
The annual domestic demand is pegged at 22-22.5 million tonne. After two seasons of shortfall, the domestic output has exceeded demand and the country is exporting sweetener.