Kolhapur: The Centre’s permission to import 10 lakh metric tonnes of raw sugar and sell it before October-end would help check the commodity’s soaring price in India’s domestic markets in the next few days, said experts.“Several importers with refineries at the port may have futures deals ready and can get the shipment in a day’s time. The landing cost of raw sugar is Rs45 per kg. After refining and other costs are added, white sugar will cost about Rs52 per kg. This will be the lowest price at which the sugar may be sold. It will eventually bring down the cost of sugar produced in India,” said Vijay Autade, a sugar industry expert.“The realisation of the traders that there is an acute shortage of sugar pushed up its price. According to market estimates, there is a stock of 32 lakh tonnes of sugar in India now. If the country’s monthly requirement of 24 lakh tonnes are released, only 10 lakh tonnes of sugar would be in stock. The govt took the decision to allow the sale of imported sugar in India to ensure its availability,” Autade said.Under the advance authorisation scheme, refineries are allowed to import raw sugar to their facilities, refine it into white sugar and export the end-product. The Centre on Thursday evening allowed the refineries to sell refined imported sugar in the domestic market.A day on, the Centre’s decision did not have any bearing on the retail price of sugar. Its price was around Rs68 per kg in Mumbai, up by Rs1 per kg, and Rs59 per kg in rest of the cities in Maharashtra, up by Rs2 per kg. The price of sugar jacked up by Rs3 per kg on Thursday. The highest price of sugar at the gates of factories in the state touched Rs7,000 per quintal.Farmers’ leader Raju Shetti said the Centre must search the premises of sugar mills as he believed these had huge quantities of “off book” sugar (unrecorded sugar). “The govt should check the godowns and transport vehicles. It will then find a huge quantity of sugar hoarded by the mills. The govt does not get tax out of it. The millers bring out such sugar when the market is bullish and earn windfall profit.”In contrast, Maharashtra cabinet minister Hasan Mushrif said, “There is no sugar stock left with the mills. The 2025-26 sugar crushing season lasted for the least number of days. Therefore, the production declined. Moreover Brazil, the world’s largest producer of sugar, decided to divert a large share of sugarcane harvest to ethanol production instead of sugar. It has caused a global crunch. The import decision will not benefit the sugar mills, but its visible effect on the retail price will be visible in the next few days.”
