The food ministry has constituted a 5-Member panel under former Member of Niti Aayog Ramesh Chand to suggest corrective and policy measures for remunerative returns to sugarcane farmers as well as whether to increase the statutory ex-mill price of sugar.
“Pursuant to the decisions taken during the meeting of representatives of sugarcane farmers from Karnataka and Maharashtra with the Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Food Minister Pralhad Joshi, a committee is constituted to examine the issues raised by sugarcane farmers and the related matters concerning the sugar sector,” the food ministry said in a notification.
Apart from Chand, the other members of the committee are officials from agriculture, food and consumer affairs ministries — Agriculture Commissioner, Joint Secretary (Sugar), Joint Secretary (Legal Metrology), and Director (sugar).
After the meeting with sugarcane farmers’ representatives on October 12, the government had issued a statement saying the committee will include authorized representatives from the central government, the concerned state governments (Karnataka and Maharashtra), farmers’ organizations, and sugar mills, as well as subject-matter expert scientists.
But, instead of including representatives of States, mills and farmers, the food ministry has asked the official panel to “consult relevant stakeholders, including farmers, sugar mills, State Governments, concerned Ministries/Departments, research institutions and experts.”
There is also no deadline for the panel to submit its report, similar to the one on legal guarantee of Minimum Support Price (MSP) as the Order says: “Committee shall submit its findings and actionable recommendations at the earliest possible for consideration by the competent authority.”
The Committee shall examine the demand for increased remunerative returns, considering cultivation costs, input costs and other relevant factors and make appropriate recommendations, the Order said. It has also been entrusted to the panel the long-pending demand of the industry to raise ex-mill sugar selling price. The panel will “examine the demand for MSP revision, considering production costs, market realisations, FRP increases and the financial viability of sugar mills,” the government said in the terms of reference (ToR).
Chand-led panel will also review testing and reporting mechanisms and recommend measures for independent verification, accuracy and transparency. Besides, it will review weighment practices, including calibration, inspection and verification mechanisms so as to ensure accuracy and transparency when farmers bring their sugarcane to mills.
The ToR also says that the committee will examine deductions being made, if any, for mechanically harvested sugarcane and assess actual weight loss attributable to mechanised harvesting. Further, it will also assess the impact of the present practices on cane prices payable to farmers and consider other related matters.
The committee has been asked to “propose corrective and policy measures, specifying actions required by the Central Government, State Governments and other competent authorities,” the order said.
The minimum selling price (MSP) of sugar was first time fixed in June 2018 (2017-18 sugar season) at ₹29/kg when the FRP of sugarcane was ₹255/quintal. In the sugar season 2018-19, the FRP was increased to ₹275/quintal and the MSP of sugar was also raised to ₹31/kg. However, there was no revision in MSP after that.