India Moves to Contain Sugar Prices as September Sale Quota Hits Record 2.65 Million Tonnes

West Bengal fixes a wholesale ceiling of ₹50 a kilogram

The West Bengal government has set a maximum wholesale price of ₹50 per kilogram for sugar in an attempt to halt the increase running through the festival season, Dainik Jagran reported. The state's agricultural marketing department expects the decision to feed through to retail counters within seven days and to bring shelf prices down to ₹53–55 per kg. Sugar will also be offered at controlled prices through the state-run Sufal Bangla outlets in the run-up to Durga Puja.

The ceiling follows three meetings, on 3, 5 and 11 September, between the department and the Posta Bazar Merchants Association in Barabazar, the main wholesale trading cluster in Kolkata. The discussions centred on keeping supply to the market normal and preventing unwarranted price increases. Officials said the ₹50 level will be maintained for at least the next three months, covering Durga Puja and the remainder of the festival calendar.

To keep the trade moving, the state is adding logistics support. Sugar may now be unloaded at warehouses of government-regulated market committees located within a 50 km radius of the Dankuni rake point, from where it will move into Sufal Bangla stalls and the regulated market committees themselves. Departmental officials will inspect markets on a rolling basis to track wholesale and retail quotations and to catch artificial price increases.

Agricultural Marketing Minister Dilip Ghosh attributed the rise in sugar prices to excessive rainfall in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka. Retail prices had been climbing for several months across the country and had reached about ₹70 per kg, weighing on household budgets and on the price of sweets.

Central government clears a record 2.65 million tonne sale quota

In parallel, the food ministry has authorised mills to sell 2.65 million tonnes of sugar in September, the highest monthly figure on record, according to the Hindi edition of Business Standard. The allocation is now issued fortnightly rather than monthly: 1.3 million tonnes for 1–15 September and a further 1.35 million tonnes for 16–30 September 2026.

The September total compares with 2.25 million tonnes for August 2026 — the same volume allocated in August 2025 — and 2.2 million tonnes for July 2026. The quota mechanism is intended to keep domestic availability adequate and to prevent abrupt swings in price, and the shift to fortnightly releases gives the ministry tighter control over timing.

Prices retreat from the August peak

Retail sugar has fallen to ₹55 per kg in parts of the market, with quotations across the country ranging between ₹55 and ₹65, Business Standard reported. The all-India average retail price has stayed below ₹60 per kg; in mid-August it had moved above ₹75. The government is aiming to return prices to what it regards as a normal band of ₹40–45 per kg, the level seen in July.

The correction is more visible upstream. Ex-factory sugar has dropped to ₹4,400–4,700 per quintal (100 kg), while the average wholesale price is around ₹5,000 per quintal; retail remains high relative to both. Officials attribute the decline to action against hoarding and to releasing more stock than demand requires. Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations in Maharashtra and other states have lifted consumption, but the sale quota is well above that demand. The festival season peaks in October and November.

Mill cash flow and the onion file

Sugar mills in Maharashtra have been cleared for an interest subsidy of ₹738.51 crore, about 7.385 billion rupees, intended to help them settle fair and remunerative price dues owed to cane growers. Separately, West Bengal is stepping up monitoring of onion prices, which reached ₹65–70 per kg in retail markets on Tuesday, and plans to open 10 cold storage facilities for onions in the state.