Sugar decontrol in due course: Pawar

The sugar industry's demand to decontrol sugar does not make sense when it, on the other hand, wants the government to introduce stringent sugarcane restrictions, said Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar at the annual general meeting of Indian Sugar Mills Association (Isma) today.

"(The sugar) industry seeks decontrol of sugar so that it can profit in the global shortfall scenario and the government to regulate the division of cane stringently. The Centre is in favour of decontrol of sugar as well as cane, and both will happen in due course," he said.

Decontrol will involve removal of marketing restrictions such as levy and free-sale quota. It will mean doing away with the requirement for mills to deliver 10 per cent of their production to the government as 'levy' under the public distribution system.

As of now, the Centre is not in favour of decontrol of sugar as it has to control the price.

"We want the farmer to get at least Rs 1,200 per 100 kg for cane, mills Rs 1,700 per 100 kg for sugar and the consumer to spend not more than Rs 20-21 for a kg of sugar. In case of global shortfall, prices will rise, and release mechanism is required to help regulate domestic prices when India is one of the few surplus nations in the current sugar year (October-September)," the minister said.