Falling short

New proposals will not solve the sugar sector problems

If the sugar industry was expecting the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog’s task force on sugar and sugarcane to come up with a panacea for its numerous and deep-rooted ills, it is in for a disappointment. The report of the panel, headed by NITI Aayog Member Ramesh Chand and having secretaries to various ministries as members, does not offer much to put this sector on an economically sound footing to enable it to survive without fiscal support. Going by reports, the task force has recommended a temporary increase of Rs 2 a kg in the ex-factory minimum sale