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By:

Rajendra Joshi

3 December 2024 at 9:20:26 am

Centre pushes for early sugarcane crushing

Mills seek special subsidy Kolhapur: Despite an estimated 30-40 lakh tonnes of sugar being available in excess of domestic demand, the Centre is stepping up efforts to keep sugar prices under control. The Union Food Ministry has urged Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka to advance the 2026-27 sugarcane crushing season so that fresh sugar reaches the market before the existing stock is exhausted. Sugar mills, however, say an early start will come at a cost. They are seeking special...

Centre pushes for early sugarcane crushing

Mills seek special subsidy Kolhapur: Despite an estimated 30-40 lakh tonnes of sugar being available in excess of domestic demand, the Centre is stepping up efforts to keep sugar prices under control. The Union Food Ministry has urged Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka to advance the 2026-27 sugarcane crushing season so that fresh sugar reaches the market before the existing stock is exhausted. Sugar mills, however, say an early start will come at a cost. They are seeking special financial assistance to compensate for the likely fall in sugar recovery and the reduction in cane weight that could result from crushing in October. India produced around 280 lakh tonnes of sugar last season. The season began with stocks of nearly 50 lakh tonnes, while annual domestic consumption is estimated at around 280 lakh tonnes. With about 35 lakh tonnes expected to remain in stock by September 30, the Centre wants the new season’s production to start flowing into the market without waiting for the traditional crushing cycle. Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka account for nearly 80 per cent of India’s sugar production. The Union Food Ministry has therefore written to the chief ministers of the three states, asking them to bring forward the start of the 2026-27 crushing season. The push comes against the backdrop of a sharp movement in sugar prices. Ex-mill prices had earlier climbed to around Rs 68 per kg, pushing retail prices close to Rs 80 per kg. Following a series of measures by the Centre, ex-mill prices have since declined to around Rs 41 per kg. Yet, the government is looking at further measures to bring prices down and ensure that stocks move into the market. One such measure has been the approval of imports of one million tonnes of raw sugar. Since initial applications covered only around eight lakh tonnes, the Centre has invited applications for the remaining quota. It has also reduced the permissible stockholding limit for traders from 400 tonnes to 200 tonnes. The next major point of discussion will be the meeting convened by Union Food and Public Distribution Secretary Sanjeev Chopra with the sugar industry in New Delhi on September 8. The secretaries of Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka have also been invited. West Indian Sugar Mills Association (WISMA) president B. B. Thombre said the Centre was pushing for crushing to begin around the middle of October. Traditionally, most mills in Maharashtra begin operations around November 15, largely because sugarcane harvesting labour becomes available only after Diwali. The industry is, however, willing to explore an early start between October 20 and 25. But early crushing could have significant implications. According to Thombre, sugar recovery could fall by around 1.5 percentage points, while the weight of sugarcane supplied by farmers could decline by 10-15 per cent. The industry will therefore seek special assistance for cane crushed between October 15 and November 15. At the September 8 meeting, it plans to demand a subsidy of Rs 500 per tonne for sugar mills and Rs 300 per tonne directly for sugarcane farmers.

The rise and fall of Munde

Updated: Mar 6, 2025

Munde

Mumbai: Finally, Dhananjay Munde submitted his resignation to the Chief Minister after months of pressure from political and social organisations that had been demanding accountability for the murder of sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh. The resignation comes a day after photos of the murder victim, which were part of the chargesheet, went viral. That turned out to be the final blow for the minister.


Dhananjay Munde, 49, is the MLA from the Parli constituency in Beed district. The nephew of late BJP veteran Gopinath Munde, a popular leader who served as Union Minister, Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, and was also a Lok Sabha MP. Munde began his career working with his uncle, Gopinath Munde, and helping manage the family's political interests in Beed. He also marked himself out as an excellent orator. Indeed, many even saw him as the senior BJP leader's 'heir apparent'.


But that changed in 2009, after Gopinath Munde picked his daughter, Pankaja, to represent the family seat of Parli. Then with the BJP, the party offered him a position in the Legislative Council. But the relationship never really recovered, and in 2012 he switched to the NCP, which was then led by Sharad Pawar. Munde's father, Panditrao Munde, made the same jump months before. Dhananjay Munde contested the 2014 election against his cousin but lost. He regrouped and returned five years later, flipping a defeat by 26,000 votes into a victory by more than 40,000.


In 2023 he sided with Ajit Pawar in his rebellion against his uncle and NCP founder Sharad Pawar. The younger Pawar was reportedly keen on signing Munde on to diversify his NCP faction's identity as more than a Maratha-centric political outfit. In return, Munde has been seen as an Ajit Pawar loyalist.


In the previous government, led by Eknath Shinde, Dhanjay Munde served as the Agriculture Minister from July 2023 to November 2024, when the Assembly election was held. During that time he was also the 'guardian minister' for Beed district. Munde was also a cabinet member when Uddhav Thackeray, boss of the then-undivided Shiv Sena, was Chief Minister. Thackeray led an alliance of the Sena, the then undivided NCP, and the Congress. He was then Minister for Social Justice and Special Assistance.


Munde has often faced controversial situations in a career spanning nearly two decades, including charges of rape in January 2021. These were made by a popular singer but later withdrawn. Munde denied all allegations and stared down the opposition's calls to quit.


But the graph of Dhananjay Munde started declining in December last year. Walmik Karad, the prime accused in the torture and murder of the sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, is a confidante of Munde, and it was that closeness that gave the opposition enough ammunition to press for the NCP leader's sacking. As controversy over the sarpanch's murder grew, in January Munde said he would have no problem resigning if asked to, either by CM Fadnavis or Ajit Pawar. On Tuesday he got the categorical message through which he was relinquished from the coveted post and was shown the door.

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