Discussions on reforming sugar industry

Former RBI governor and chairman of Prime Minister‘s Economic Advisory Council C Rangarajan on Thursday held a discussion with Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda regarding ushering in reforms in the sugar industry, a sector still under State control.

In January this year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had set up an expert panel under C Rangarajan to chalk out a policy prescription for deregulation.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Rangarajan said the committee is exploring the possibility of recommending revenue-sharing mechanism between the sugar industry and sugar cane growers.

The panel is visiting various sugar cane-growing states to gather their views before submitting its recommendations to the prime minister.

Rangarajan said the State government suggested a revenue-sharing formula such that if the sugar industry makes profit above a particular margin, it could be shared with sugar cane growers. This would be in addition to the minimum price given to the growers.

Agriculture Minister Umesh Katti, Horticulture Minister S A Ravindranath and Chief Secretary S V Ranganath were present at the meeting.

The sugar industry in India is controlled right from the purchase of sugar cane to sale in the open market. Karnataka sugar industry ranks third in terms of its contribution to the total sugar production in the country.