Sugar Production In Odisha Not Profitable: Minister

Bhubaneswar: Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare minister Ranendra Pratap Swain on Wednesday informed the Odisha Assembly that the production of sugar in Odisha was not profitable.

The Minister, in a written reply, said that the state government has sustained loss as the cost of production of sugar was higher than the selling price.

“While production of one kg of sugar costs Rs 47-48, the selling price in the open market is Rs 32. This is not confined to Odisha. This has become a global issue,” he added.

The present production is much less than the state’s annual requirement of 2.21 lakh metric tonne since only two of the eight sugar mills are operational, Swain said.

Due to the shortfall in production, the state is forced to import sugar from the neighbouring state, he added.

On the revival of the six defunct sugar mills, he said the state government had taken steps in this regard and engaged a private agency to conduct a detailed survey of the sick mills.