The government has taken action against sugar mills for violating stockholding limit orders and selling in excess of their release quota. As a result, the quota for around 132 sugar mills for December 2024 has been reduced.
In an order issued on November 29 by the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) allocating 22 lakh tonnes (LMT) of sugar among 574 mills for sales in the domestic market during December, the Government said, “It has been observed that some of sugar mills have violated the stockholding limits and sold the sugar in excess to their release quota for the month of September, 2024. Therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 (10 of 1955) read with clause 4 and 5 of the Sugar (Control) Order, 1966 and Order of the Government of India, Department of Food & Public Distribution vide S.O. No. 2347(E) dated 07.06.2018, it has been decided to deduct the release quota for the month of December-2024 as per this: (i) The excess quantity of sugar sold during September-2024, is deducted from release quota of December-2024. (ii) Sugar mills which dispatched less than 90% of quota for September-2024 without intimation, the release quota for the month of December-2024 is restricted to the percentage utilization of quota in the September-2024 by the mill.”
The monthly sugar quota of 22 LMT for December 2024, is lower than the quantity allocated in December 2023. The government had allocated a monthly sugar quota of 24 LMT for domestic sale for December 2023.
DFPD directed sugar mills to ensure development of their API modules and integrate with NSWS portal in a time bound manner and submit the monthly P-II for November-2024 through API by 20th December, 2024.
DFPD also asked all the sugar mills to ensure the compliance of mandatory packaging of 20% of sugar in jute bags under Jute Packaging Material (Compulsory Use
in Packing Commodities) Act, 1987 and submit the information thereof in P-II proforma on NSWS portal. Any violation of this order would attract the penal provisions under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, as amended from time to time.
