Sugar production in the current season is expected to be around 310 lakh tonnes (lt) as compared to estimated 274 lt in the previous sugar season, which closed on September 30, according to first advance estimate of sugar production released by Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) on Monday.

This is after the estimated diversion of 20 lt sugar for producing ethanol using B heavy molasses and cane juice. Last year, 8 lt sugar was diverted for ethanol production, it said in a statement.

The opening balance of sugar on October 1 is estimated to be 106.4 lt (145.8 lt). The estimated domestic sales in 2019-20 season was 257 lt and exports were around 56.5 lt. ISMA, which met on Monday, said there is about 9 per cent increase in area under sugarcane this year as compared to the previous year. The satellite imageries captured during the first week of October showed total sugarcane acreage to be 52.68 lakh ha (48.41 lakh ha).

State-wise output

As per the latest production estimates, Uttar Pradesh is projected to produce 124.57 lt (126.37 lt), while Maharashtra — which was hit by drought as well as by floods one after another last year — would produce 108 lt, about 46.34 lt more than last year.

Similarly, sugarcane area in Karnataka has gone up by 0.8 lakh ha to 5 lakh ha and this is estimated to increase the 2020-21 production by nearly 11 lt to touch 46 lt, ISMA said.

Barring Tamil Nadu, whose sugarcane area came down slightly and Gujarat, which registered a 7 per cent increase in the sugarcane acreage, all other sugar-producing States are expected to maintain same production levels as the 2019-20 season, it said.