Sugar Industry must continue farmer-centric policies to ensure sector remains globally competitive: Pralhad Joshi
India has become the world’s third-largest ethanol producer and consumer, driven by government policy changes, said Pralhad Joshi, Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, at the India Sugar & Bio Energy Conference. He highlighted the Ethanol Blended Petrol Programme’s success, which increased ethanol production, reduced greenhouse emissions, and boosted investment in rural distilleries, generating significant employment opportunities in the sugar industry.
India has now become the world’s third-largest producer and consumer of ethanol, thanks to policy changes implemented by the government, stated Pralhad Joshi, Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and New & Renewable Energy, during his address at the India Sugar & Bio Energy Conference today.
Discussing the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme, the Union Minister noted that under the leadership of the Prime Minister, significant steps have been taken to boost ethanol production capacity in India. “Over the past decade, sugar mills have increased their revenue from ethanol sales, the use of ethanol-blended petrol has led to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, and new investment opportunities have arisen, resulting in the establishment of distilleries in rural areas and generating both direct and indirect employment,” he said.
Adding on, he emphasized that the Centre Government is committed to a robust, sustainable sugar industry that is not only an economic pillar but also a driving force in India’s renewable energy landscape. He said that the industry must continue on the path of innovation, public-private partnerships, and farmer-centric policies to ensure that India’s sugar and bio-energy sectors remain globally competitive.
Joshi said that in last 10 years, area of sugarcane cultivation increased by about 18% while the sugarcane production has increased by 40%. He said Minimum Selling Price (MSP) of sugar was introduced in 2018 to protect the interests of farmers and the sugar industry by the Centre.
“With the introduction of MSP, the area of pending cane dues of farmers has become a thing of the past. Cane dues pendency is at an all-time low in India with around 99% cane dues out of Rs. 1.14 lakh crores have been paid to farmers with support of the sugar industry,” he said.
The Minister stressed on the vital role of farmers and said, “Our farmers are evolving from being the Anna Dattas to becoming Urja Dattas, reflecting the vital role they play in India’s renewable energy landscape.” He said that this synergy between agriculture and green energy is essential for building a sustainable and resilient future for India, aligning with country’s global climate goals of net zero emissions by 2070. “We have already achieved targets of the Paris climate agreement well ahead of time,” he said.
Joshi said that India is the second largest producer of sugarcane next to Brazil and therefore, both countries can cooperate and collaborate on production and use of biofuels like ethanol, biodiesel, biojet fuel etc. He said that considering the huge opportunities in the sector of bioenergy, 2G&3G Ethanol, Green Hydrogen and Bio-plastics, the sector should promote technology exchange, joint R&D to encourage investment in biofuels and flex-fuel technology. “There are many new opportunities with the Global Biofuels Alliance,” he said.
The Union Minister said India is a Global Food Basket. To promote Bharat Brand and Indian Food at global level, sustainable packaging is encouraged.
Present on the occasion was Sanjeev Chopra, Secretary, Department of Food and Public Distribution, Government of India, while addressing the event said that due to good monsoon, good crop is expected and thereby production in Sugar Season in 2024-2025 looks better. Adding on he said that due to Centre’s intervention and policies, the sugar prices are stable due to which consumers are relieved.
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