Govt modifies sugar import order, says refined produt must be sold within 2 months
This story was originally published at 21:32 IST on 24 August 2026
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MUMBAI – The goverment has modified its order of Thursday allowing the import of 1 million tonnes of raw sugar at nil duty until the end of October, adding a condition that importers need to sell the processed sugar in the domestic market within two months from the date of filing of the bill of entry, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade said Monday. In Thursday's order, the government had scrapped the 100% import duty on raw sugar until October.
Earlier, the conversion of imported raw sugar to white or refined sugar was asked to be "sufficiently in advance" so that it is sold by Oct. 31. All other conditions in Thursday's notice remain unchanged, the directorate general said in a notification.
Sugar prices have been rallying since July but have risen sharply in August amid limited supply and strong purchases by bulk consumers ahead of the peak demand season. Festivals such as Ganesh Chaturthi and Krishna Janmashtami fall in September. Demand is expected to peak ahead of Navratri, Durga Puja, and Dussehra in October, followed by Diwali and Chhath Puja in November. The government also imposed sugar stock-holding limits on bulk consumers to control prices.
The government has said sugar prices rallied to record highs because of weather-related damage to sugarcane crop and lower-than-expected production and not due to the diversion of sugar for ethanol production. End
Reported by Ashutosh Pati
Edited by Rajeev Pai
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