The central government has announced a reduction in the stockholding limit for sugar dealers, slashing it from 4,000 quintals to 2,000 quintals. This move aims to tighten regulations on sugar trade, particularly in light of the upcoming festive season. The government is taking these steps to prevent hoarding and speculative buying, which could disrupt market stability and affect consumer prices.
The latest move is part of Centre’s major interventions in the sugar market in little over a month. It first capped dealer stocks at 4,000 quintals from August 1, then extended stock restrictions to large industrial consumers from September 1, limiting those using more than 10 tonnes of sugar a month to 15 days of their requirement. The government has also allowed duty-free imports of 1 million tonnes of raw sugar until October 31, the first such import intervention in nearly a decade, to improve domestic availability ahead of the festival season.
The new limit is aimed at further curbing hoarding, discouraging speculative trading and preventing excessive accumulation of sugar stocks , the government said. The measure will “facilitate the orderly movement of sugar through the supply chain” and ensure its “continuous availability to consumers at reasonable prices”, it said.
The announcement has begun to ease wholesale prices, although retail prices have remained substantially higher than earlier levels.
