Start production, Sharad Pawar tells UP mill owners

NEW DELHI/PUNE: Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar on Wednesday told Uttar Pradesh sugar mills, which have stopped work protesting high cane prices, to restart production at the earliest. He said ministers studying alternatives to solve the impasse between industry and farmers. The Cabinet is likely to take the issue of bailing out the sugar mills next week. After a meeting with finance minister P Chidambaram and civil aviation minister Ajit Singh, he said there was no decision yet on ways to help the sugar industry.

“We have just discussed the issue. The (sugar) prices have dropped and that is why the industry facing a serious problem. We want crushing to start. There are about five alternatives which were brought to our notice,” he said. He added, “We have to study the impact of these alternatives. This information will be available to us in the next 8-10 days,” he said. On the question of increasing the interest rate on the sugar development fund loan, Pawar said they have not discussed the issue. Speaking for cane farmers, Ajit Singh said the rural economy depended on sugar cane in many regions.

”We discussed various measures. One was providing loans to mills against excise duty payment with interest rate to be borne by the Centre through the sugar development fund.” Among other options, Singh said the independent Saumitra Chaudhary committee would also look into revising the duty drawback rate on sugar export upwards from 1.3%. “The current period for re-export of imported sugar is 18 months and we have asked it be reduced to three months,” said Singh.