NEW DELHI: Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar prevailed upon the food ministry to push subsidy for export of sugar by private manufacturers at a price closer to what he had originally proposed. The Cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved Rs 3,333 as subsidy for exporting every tonne of raw sugar.

While food minister K V Thomas had initially proposed the subsidy at Rs 2,000 per tonne, Pawar wanted it fixed at Rs 3,500 to make exports viable for Indian sugar millers.

The decision came a day after a CCEA meeting on Tuesday evening saw some fireworks between Thomas and Pawar, sources said. It is learnt that while an informal group of ministers headed by Pawar had agreed to recommend Rs 3,500 subsidy per tonne to the Cabinet for approval, the food ministry's proposal was nowhere near that.