{"id":255151,"date":"2023-08-07T20:57:31","date_gmt":"2023-08-07T15:27:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?p=255151"},"modified":"2023-08-29T18:29:28","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T12:59:28","slug":"is-indias-sugar-surplus-leading-to-a-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/is-indias-sugar-surplus-leading-to-a-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Is India\u2019s sugar surplus leading to a crisis?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Source<\/strong>– The post is based on the article \u201cIs India\u2019s sugar surplus leading to a crisis?\u201d <\/strong>published in \u201cThe Hindu\u201d <\/strong>on 7th August 2023<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Syllabus: <\/strong>GS1- Economic geography.<\/p>\n

Relevance:<\/strong> Issues related to sugar production<\/p>\n

News<\/strong>-India became the world\u2019s top sugar producer in 2021-2022, surpassing Brazil with a record of 359 lakh tonnes. However, the extensive use of resources in sugar production is depleting rapidly, leading to a potential crisis in the future.<\/p>\n

What are the reasons behind excess sugar production?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The excess production<\/strong> is a result of policies and measures<\/strong> that encourage farmers to prioritize the cultivation of sugarcane.<\/p>\n

To ensure the welfare of sugarcane farmers, the Central government has implemented the fair and remunerative price scheme.<\/strong> This scheme establishes a minimum price <\/strong>that sugar mills must pay to the farmers.<\/p>\n

Moreover, state governments offer significant subsidies to<\/strong> incentivize <\/strong>the cultivation of sugarcane. These actions are motivated by political considerations<\/strong> to win votes in crucial rural areas.<\/p>\n

The surplus sugar production has resulted in a notable increase in exports. A record 110 lakh tonnes<\/strong> was exported during the 2021-2022 period.<\/p>\n

However, India’s aggressive export promotion and domestic support strategies<\/strong> for farmers have raised concerns among other sugar-producing nations like Brazil, Australia.<\/p>\n

They filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization and accused India of violating international trade rules<\/strong> by offering excessive export subsidies and domestic support.<\/strong> The WTO ruled against India, and India’s subsequent appeal was also unsuccessful.<\/p>\n

What efforts have been made by the government to address this issue?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The Indian government is diverting it to the production of ethanol<\/strong>. In the transport sector, the use of ethanol-blended petrol significantly reduces harmful emissions<\/strong> from vehicles.<\/p>\n

The government launched the EBP programme in 2003 <\/strong>to reduce crude oil imports and curtail greenhouse gas emissions from petrol-based vehicles.<\/p>\n

It started with the modest goal of achieving a blending rate of 5%<\/strong>, but the target set for 2025 is 20%. <\/strong><\/p>\n

The government also reduced the Goods and Services Tax on ethanol from 18% to 5%<\/strong> in 2021. In the same year, of the 394 lakh tonnes of total sugar produced, about 350 lakh tonnes were diverted to produce ethanol.<\/p>\n

How does excessive sugarcane cultivation impact groundwater?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sugarcane requires a substantial amount of rainfall,<\/strong> around 3,000 mm. But, in the top-growing States, the actual rainfall <\/strong>received is only 1,000-1,200 mm.<\/p>\n

The cultivation of sugarcane necessitates a significant amount of irrigation<\/strong>, with approximately two lakh litres of groundwater<\/strong> required for irrigating 100 kg of sugar. <\/strong><\/p>\n

These States are already prone to drought and face stress on their groundwater resources<\/strong>. It is indicated by a 2022 report from the Central Ground Water Board.<\/strong><\/p>\n

What should be done?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

There is a need for evaluating incentives<\/strong> that favour sugarcane cultivation over other crops and lead to a persistent surplus. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Introducing fair and comprehensive subsidy schemes<\/strong> for various crops can encourage farmers to diversify their crops<\/strong>. It can achieve a more balanced distribution<\/strong> of cultivation, prevent monocultures,<\/strong> and ensure a fair income. <\/strong><\/p>\n

In the long term, environmentally responsible sugarcane cultivation practices<\/strong> must be adopted, with a focus on groundwater conservation.<\/p>\n

Use of drip irrigation <\/strong>must be promoted. It can reduce water consumption by up to 70% compared to conventional flood irrigation methods.<\/p>\n

Investments are needed in water-saving and management systems<\/strong>, including rainwater harvesting, wastewater treatment, and canal irrigation networks. <\/strong><\/p>\n

The Central Ground Water Board<\/strong> conducts valuable research and gathers data. But, there are still gaps in understanding groundwater availability and distribution<\/strong>. Therefore, it is crucial to seriously consider investments in groundwater research.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Source– The post is based on the article \u201cIs India\u2019s sugar surplus leading to a crisis?\u201d published in \u201cThe Hindu\u201d on 7th August 2023. Syllabus: GS1- Economic geography. Relevance: Issues related to sugar production News-India became the world\u2019s top sugar producer in 2021-2022, surpassing Brazil with a record of 359 lakh tonnes. However, the extensive… Continue reading Is India\u2019s sugar surplus leading to a crisis?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230,9],"tags":[80,263],"class_list":["post-255151","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","category-public","tag-geography","tag-gs-paper-1","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255151","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=255151"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/255151\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=255151"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=255151"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=255151"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}