New Delhi [India], August 5 : India exported 100 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of sugar and diverted 35 LMT to ethanol production during the 2021-22 sugar season, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution said on Friday.
Export of sugar of 100 LMT till 1st August 2022 in the current sugar season has helped in improving the liquidity of sugar mills by Rs 33,000 crore enabling them to clear cane price dues of farmers.
Further export of sugar of 12 LMT would help in improving the liquidity of sugar mills by Rs 3600 crore enabling them to clear cane price dues of farmers which stood around Rs 9700 crore as on 4th August 2022. Export of sugar to this extent would also help in earning foreign exchange and would help in reducing trade deficit, the ministry said in a statement.
During past few years, sugar production in the country has been consistently more than the domestic consumption thereby creating the surplus situation.
With a view to address the problem of surplus sugar in the country, the Central Government has been encouraging sugar mills during the last few sugar seasons to divert surplus sugar to ethanol and is also facilitating mills to export surplus sugar thereby improving liquidity of sugar mills enabling them to clear cane price dues of farmers.
Export of sugar and diversion of sugar to ethanol during the recent times has also helped in maintaining demand-supply balance and stabilising domestic sugar prices, the ministry said.
In view of the macro scenario going across the globe, any uncontrolled export from India beyond the comfortable limit could have created scarcity; and local prices could spike during the period of September-November, 2022. The government is also concerned about food inflation. Therefore, with a view to ensure sufficient availability of sugar for domestic consumption within the country at reasonable price, Government in May, 2022 has imposed restrictions on export of sugar beyond 100 LMT; and exporters as well as sugar mills were issued Export Release Orders (EROs) upto 10 LMT for export in June, 2022. As on 01.08.2022, about 100 LMT has been exported, it added.