The Centre on Thursday banned the use of ‘sugarcane juice and sugar syrup’ for ethanol production in the 2023-24 supply year that started this month, to maintain adequate sugar availability for domestic consumption and to keep prices under check. However, considering the fear of loss to sugarcane growers, Maharashtra minister Dilip Walse Patil said, a delegation from the state will meet Union Minister for Cooperatives Amit Shah.

 

Speaking in Nagpur, Walse Patil said, “A team of ministers will soon meet Amit Shah in Delhi to discuss the issue.”

 

While banning the use of sugarcane juice for ethanol, the Centre has allowed the use of ‘B-molasses’ for ethanol production in 2023-24, a move which the sugar industry bodies welcomed.

 

Prakash Naiknaware, managing director, National Co-operative Federation, said, “As a national interest to control the sugar prices, Centre took the decision but it would badly affect the sugarcane industry which has installed the plants to convert sugarcane to ethanol.”

 

Naiknaware said we will write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

 

“We will appeal to revise the decision. To control the sugar prices, the government can import the sugar for the next few months and whatever would be the difference between domestic and imported sugar, the government should subsidise it,” he said.

 

Shekhar Gaikwad, sugar commissioner, said Maharashtra and Karnataka are the major ethanol producers. “The government took this decision as a precaution. However, there are very few factories that are using direct sugarcane syrup for ethanol. It was policy to blend ethanol from food grains and sugarcane. Now government might increase the ethanol blending from foodgrain,” said Gaikwad.

 

In a letter issued to all sugar mills and distillers, the Food Ministry directed them “not to use sugarcane juice /sugar syrup” for ethanol production during the 2023-24 ethanol supply year (December-November).

 

The decision by the ministry comes in the backdrop of an estimated fall in sugar production in the 2023-24 marketing year (October-September).

 

Jayant Patil, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader, said, “The central government’s decision would badly affect sugarcane farmers. Mainly farmers from Maharashtra and Karnataka will be affected. We are requesting the central government to revise the decision.”