Govt modifies ethanol procurement policy under blending programme

The government has modified the policy for procurement of ethanol under the Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP), providing for a new process that smoothens the entire ethanol supply chain and fixes the ex-depot price of ethanol in the range of Rs48.50 to Rs49.50 per litre.

The government also extended the incentive scheme for marketing and promotion services of raw sugar production targeted for export for the current sugar season 2014-15 at uniform rate of Rs4,000 per tonne, for a quantity of 1.4 million tonnes.

These measures are likely to help in evacuation of surplus sugar from the country and improve the financial condition of sugar mills, minister of consumer affairs, food and public distribution Ram Vilas Paswan informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply today.

Apart from modified EBP programme and export incentive scheme, the minister stated that a scheme for extending financial assistance to sugar undertakings (SEFASU-2014) was announced early last year to facilitate clearance of cane price arrears of previous sugar seasons and timely settlement of cane price of sugar season 2013-14 to sugarcane farmers.

The scheme envisages additional working capital loans to sugar mills by banks with interest subvention.

Paswan said the Sugarcane (Control) Order, 1966 stipulates payment of cane price within 14 days of supply, failing which interest at the rate of 15 per cent per annum on amount due for the delayed period beyond 14 days is payable. The powers for enforcing this provision are vested with the state governments/union territory administrations that have necessary field formations, he added.