Government hikes sugarcane price by Rs 20/quintal to Rs 275

New Delhi: The government on Wednesday decided to increase the minimum price sugar mills pay to cane growers by Rs 20 per quintal to Rs 275 per quintal for the next marketing year starting October, sources said.

The decision to increase the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane for the 2018-19 marketing year was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), they added.

The government had recently announced a sharp increase in the minimum support price (MSP) of kharif (summer-sown) crops, including paddy. The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) had recommended Rs 20 per quintal hike in the FRP of sugarcane at Rs 275 per quintal for the next season.

The FRP, which is the minimum price that sugar mills have to pay to sugarcane farmers, is Rs 255 per quintal for the 2017-18 season.