November 6, 2021: While blaming the Sindh government for delaying the cane crushing season in the province, Spokesperson for Finance Minister Muzammil Aslam on Saturday said millers in Punjab will begin crushing cane from November 15.
He said the government had adequate sugar stocks for 22 days and the crushing season will arrest the rising trend in sugar prices.
The spokesperson said that the reason behind sugar price increases is political as everyone knows who owns most of the sugar mills in the country. Despite having bumper sugar cane crop, some players in the sugar food chain are playing political games.
He said that against this backdrop, the government has no option but to import rising to control prices. One vessel would be berthed in a couple of days carrying 40,000 metric tons of sugar. So far, during the current fiscal year, the government has imported 157,827 tonnes of sugar despite having adequate stocks.
He said that on one hand Punjab and federal governments were doing their utmost to control rising sugar prices, Sindh Government has taken no concrete steps in this regard.
In Punjab, crackdowns have started and the price has been reduced by Rs10 per kilo while Sindh Government is silent on the price increase. He also said the federal government is ready to release sugar for the Sindh government if the need arises.
