Summary:
Traders who buy sugar at lower rates can then go on to sell it at lower rates in retail markets. This step helped stop the freefall in ex-mill sugar prices and helped mills raise the requisite funds from banks. In April-May last year, sugar prices had fallen to Rs 2,400-2,500, upsetting the financial equations of millers. AdvertisingAcross the state, mills have been struggling to recover even their production costs — pegged at Rs 3,400 per quintal — as sugar prices have dropped over the last 12 months. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has asked for a report from the state Sugar Commissioner’s office about mills selling sugar below the minimum selling price (MSP) of Rs 2,900 per quintal, after a complaint on the issue was filed by Swabhimani Paksh MP Raju Shetti earlier this month..