Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has assured farmer organisations that he will facilitate a meeting at the central government level with sugar mill owners to discuss demands for raising the minimum selling price (MSP) of sugar to ₹50 per kg and the price of ethanol to ₹75 per litre, according to a report by ChiniMandi.
The proposed meeting follows representations made by farmer organisations during Fadnavis’s visit to Sangli, Maharashtra, on October 19. The demands seek to improve the financial viability of sugar production and ethanol manufacturing while strengthening returns for sugarcane farmers.
Farmer Organisations Seek Higher Sugar and Ethanol Prices
Representatives of several farmer organisations met Fadnavis and submitted a memorandum outlining their concerns over current sugar and ethanol prices.
The delegation included Mahesh Kharade, state vice-president of the BJP Kisan Morcha; Jalindar Patil, state president of the Shetkari Sanghatana; and Shivaji Mane, president of the Jai Shivray Sanghatana.
The organisations called for the following changes:
- Sugar minimum selling price: An increase to ₹50 per kg, which they said would better reflect production costs.
- Ethanol price: An increase to ₹75 per litre to improve the financial position of sugar mills and support better returns for farmers.
- Sugarcane price: A payment of ₹5,000 per tonne to sugarcane growers.
The delegation argued that existing sugar prices were insufficient to cover production costs and urged the Maharashtra government to take up the demands with the Centre.
Centre to Be Asked to Convene Joint Meeting
The memorandum addressed pricing issues that fall within the central government’s remit. According to ChiniMandi, Fadnavis assured the representatives that he would facilitate a joint meeting involving farmer organisations and sugar mill owners at the central level.
The proposed discussions are expected to provide a forum for examining the demands for higher sugar and ethanol prices. However, no meeting date or decision on the requested price revisions was reported as of October 21.
Any increase in the prices would depend on the relevant government decisions; the Chief Minister’s assurance concerns facilitating discussions rather than confirming that the demands will be accepted.
Farmers Raise Sugarcane Measurement and Harvesting Concerns
Beyond commodity pricing, the memorandum called for changes to sugarcane procurement and harvesting practices.
The farmer organisations sought a system to measure sugar recovery at the farm gate, potentially addressing concerns over how the recoverable sugar content of cane is assessed. They also called for extortion charges to be filed against individuals demanding additional payments for sugarcane harvesting.
These demands broaden the issue beyond sugar and ethanol pricing to include the transparency of cane valuation and the costs incurred by growers during harvesting.
The organisations are now awaiting confirmation of the proposed meeting. Its timing and outcome could determine whether the demands progress to formal policy discussions.
Bioenergy Business Analysis
The demands highlight the connection between administered ethanol prices, sugar-sector economics and the financial returns available to sugarcane growers. For India’s sugar industry, the relationship matters because mills can allocate cane-derived feedstock between sugar production and ethanol manufacturing, subject to government policies, procurement arrangements and operational constraints.
Ethanol pricing is central to the debate. A higher price could improve revenue per unit of ethanol sold, provided mills can supply eligible volumes and secure procurement. However, the effect on profitability would depend on feedstock costs, conversion efficiency, operating expenses, financing costs and the applicable procurement framework. A requested price of ₹75 per litre should therefore be treated as a proposal, not an established market price or an approved policy change.
The proposed sugar price revision also raises questions about cost recovery. The farmer organisations’ demand for a minimum selling price of ₹50 per kg reflects their position that current realisations are inadequate. Whether that level would improve mill finances and farmer payments would depend on production costs, market conditions, inventories and the mechanisms linking mill revenues to cane prices.
The request for a sugarcane price of ₹5,000 per tonne and farm-gate sugar recovery measurement adds a separate dimension: how gains across the sugar value chain are distributed. Transparent recovery measurement could help address disputes over cane valuation, although its effectiveness would depend on the measurement methodology, verification procedures and implementation.
The next significant development to watch is whether the proposed meeting takes place and produces specific policy recommendations. Until the central government announces any changes, the requested sugar and ethanol prices remain demands from farmer organisations rather than confirmed revisions.
For the bioenergy sector, the outcome could influence discussions about the commercial viability of sugar-based ethanol and the distribution of value between mills and growers. The immediate significance, however, lies in the opening of a policy dialogue—not in any confirmed change to ethanol procurement prices.
