Sugar output in 2019-20 may fall by 18% to 273 lakh tonnes

New Delhi: India's sugar production is estimated to decline by 18 per cent to 273 lakh tonnes in the ongoing marketing year ending September due to bad weather, the government said on Friday in the Rajya Sabha.

Sugar marketing year runs from October to September.

"During current sugar season 2019-20, sugar mills in some of the States, particularly Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka have started sugar production earlier than last year but the sugar production in the country is estimated to be about 273 lakh tonnes as against about 332 lakh tonnes produced last year," Minister of State for Food and Consumer Affairs Danve Raosaheb Dadarao said in a written reply.

The sugar commissioner of Maharashtra informed that sugar production during current 2019-20 is estimated at about 58.3 lakh tonnes as against 107 lakh tonnes during last year.

However, the minister said, "With the carryover stock of about 140 lakh tonnes of last sugar season together with estimated production of 273 lakh tonnes during current sugar season, the total availability of sugar in the country is estimated to be about 413 lakh tonnes as against estimated domestic consumption of 260 lakh tonnes."

There would not be any shortage of sugar in the country in near future, he added.

"The decline in sugar production in sugar season 2019-20 in the state of Maharashtra is mainly due to low availability of cane following drought last year and heavy rainfall in this year," the minister said.

Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) has pegged the production in 2019-20 at 28.2 million tonnes. It has revised its estimates downward by taking into account the expected diversion of sugar into ethanol; and on account of scanty rainfall in some parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka and excessive rainfall in some other regions resulting in floods, destroying sugarcane crop.