As expected, crushing for sugar season 2018-19 has started on time. As on November 15, 2018, 238 sugar mills were already crushing sugarcane, as compared to 349 sugar mills which were crushing sugarcane in the corresponding period last year. Sugar production as on November 15, 2018 was 11.63 lakh tonne, as compared to 13.73 lakh tonne produced in the corresponding period in 2017.
Most of the sugar mills in Uttar Pradesh started in the first half of November 2018, whereas 38 mills had started crushing in October last year. Due to the late start, sugar mills in the northern state produced 1.76 lakh tonne of sugar upto November 15, 2018, as against 5.67 lakh tonne produced till the corresponding period of last year. Seventy-one sugar mills were crushing sugarcane as on November 15, 2018, as against 78 sugar mills at the same time last year.
In case of Maharashtra, sugar mills started their crushing operations earlier this year, in the latter part of October. Accordingly, as on November 15, 2018. However, only 108 mills were in operation, and they produced 6.31 lac tonne of sugar. Last year, sugar mills started crushing late, because of which even though 160 mills were in operation as on November 15, 2017, they produced 3.26 lakh tonne.
In Karnataka, 36 sugar mills were in operation as on November 15, 2018, and produced 1.85 lac tonne, as compared to 59 mills, which produced 3.71 lakh tonne during the corresponding period last year.
There were 14 sugar mills in operation in Gujarat as on November 15, 2018, and these mills have produced 1.05 lakh tonne till that date. However, in the same period last year, 15 mills produced only 80,000 tonne of sugar. Four sugar mills in Tamil Nadu have started crushing till November 15, 2018 and they produced 60,000 tonne of sugar. Last year, six mills were operating, which produced 17000 tonne till November 15, 2017.
