Id: 22 Name: Sugar Production upto 30th April 2012 Venue: Delhi Date: 30 Apr 2012 Event Pdf: The sugar production upto the end of April, 2012 for the current sugar season is 251 lakh tons. This is almost 25 lakh tons more than the production upto the end of April, 2011 last year. Most of the increase has been contributed by U.P, which has seen an increase of almost 11 lakh tons, Maharashtra where the increase is about 5 lakh tons, Karnataka where the increase is almost 3 lakh tons and Tamil Nadu where the sugar production is more by almost 4 lakh tons as compared to last year· Till 30th April, 2012, U.P. has produced 69.58 lakh tons, Maharashtra has produced 88.34 lakh tons, Karnataka produced 37.10 lakh tons, Tamil Nadu produced 15.75 lakh tons and Andhra Pradesh produced 11.18 lakh tons. · However, as compared to last year, the number of sugar mills still crushing sugarcane is lower at 129 sugar mills as on 1st May 2012 in comparison to 174 sugar mills last year on the same date, with the exception that Tamil Nadu still have a higher number of sugar mills i.e. 42 crushing sugarcane when compared to last year i.e. 33 sugar mills. · Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) is absolutely certain that its sugar production estimate of 260 lakh tons projected way back in July 2011 will be achieved. The balance 9 lakh tons beyond the 251 lakh tons already produced would come largely from Tamil Nadu which is expected to still produce about 6.5 lakh tons between May and September in the current season. During last year, Tamil Nadu sugar mills produced 6.9 lakh tons in these 5 months. ·In view of 64 sugar mills still crushing sugarcane in Maharashtra, ISMA expects another 2 lakh tons to be produced by Maharashtra sugar mills in the next couple of months and Karnataka to produce just about 1 lakh tons, partly in May and partly in September, 2012. .With lot of pride, ISMA can claim to have successfully and correctly estimated sugar production during 2010-11 and 2011-12 sugar seasons. During the current sugar season, the estimation has been right on target, almost without any difference. This has been possible not only because of some very good analysis by the office of ISMA but also because of technology based satellite mapping of sugarcane acreage and continuous field visits carried out both by Indian Sugar Mills Association and National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories Ltd. With such good estimations, policy decisions could be taken early and confidently for the betterment of the sugar industry, sugarcane farmers and the sugar consumers in India, which will help sustain high sugarcane and sugar production in the years to come.