Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Rising sugar prices could make the festive season a little less sweet for Indian households. As prices climb ahead of the festive rush, consumers are not only paying more for sugar but are also finding limits on how much they can buy, with quick-commerce platforms and offline retailers capping purchases.
With festivals around the corner, sugar demand is set to rise as households stock up for sweets, desserts and traditional preparations. But even as consumers prepare for the festive season, the availability of sugar at current prices is becoming a concern.
Reviewing the situation across quick-commerce platforms, India Today Digital found that Zepto, Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart have placed quantity limits on some sugar products, restricting how many packs a customer can add to an order.
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The restrictions vary across products and platforms. On Zepto, for instance, some sugar products carry limits on the number of packs that can be purchased, while the app also flags limited availability for certain products.
Blinkit similarly shows purchase limits on some sugar packs.
On Swiggy Instamart, a listing for Supreme Harvest Crystal Sugar showed a cap of two 1-kg packs per order.
The limits come as sugar prices have risen sharply, putting pressure on both consumers and retailers at a time when demand is expected to pick up.
And it is not just online shopping.
SUGAR BUYING CAPPED AT OFFLINE STORES TOO
The purchase restrictions have also spilled over into physical retail.
Large offline retail chains, including DMart and Reliance have capped sugar purchases at around 2–3 kg per customer in some stores, reported Times of India.
That means consumers are facing restrictions on both sides of the retail market — whether they order sugar online for quick delivery or head to a supermarket to buy it.
The timing is significant. The festive season typically brings a sharp increase in demand for sugar as homes prepare sweets and traditional foods, while sweet shops, bakeries and other food businesses also increase procurement.
WHY IS SUGAR GETTING MORE EXPENSIVE?
The rise in sugar prices has prompted the government to step in with measures aimed at improving supplies and preventing hoarding.
The government has revised the rules for duty-free imports of raw sugar, giving importers more time to process the imported raw sugar into refined sugar and sell it in the domestic market.
Under the original August 20 notification, the government allowed
1 million tonnes of raw sugar to be imported duty-free under a tariff-rate quota (TRQ) until October 31, 2026.
Importers were required to convert the raw sugar into white or refined sugar and sell it in India by October 31.
The government has now changed that requirement.
Under the revised rules, importers will get up to two months from the date of filing the Bill of Entry to process the raw sugar into refined sugar and sell it in the domestic market.
The move comes as domestic sugar prices have climbed sharply and the government looks to improve availability while curbing hoarding and speculative buying.
GOVERNMENT LOOKS TO BOOST SUPPLIES
The duty-free import window is aimed at bringing additional sugar into the domestic market at a time when prices are under pressure.
The government had allowed the import of 1 million tonnes of raw sugar under the TRQ as part of its efforts to improve availability. By giving importers a two-month window from the filing of the Bill of Entry, the latest change also gives refiners greater flexibility in processing and selling the imported sugar.
But imports will take time to move through the supply chain and reach consumers.
In the meantime, retailers appear to be managing the quantities available to individual customers.
That is particularly important with the festive season approaching, when demand for sugar traditionally rises.
For a consumer buying one or two packets of sugar for regular household use, the limits may not make much difference.
But for families preparing for festivals, bulk household purchases or consumers looking to stock up as prices rise, the restrictions could become more noticeable.
The limits also raise a broader question:
if sugar supplies are being managed closely at the retail level, how quickly will government measures translate into lower prices for consumers?
The answer will depend on how quickly additional supplies enter the market and whether the government’s measures are enough to ease the pressure on domestic prices.
For now, the situation presents an unusual squeeze for consumers.
Sugar is getting costlier just as demand is about to rise — and in some cases, even paying the higher price does not mean you can buy as much as you want.
With the festive season approaching, the coming weeks will show whether the government’s steps can bring enough sugar into the market to ease both the price pressure and the purchase restrictions.
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
