Do you agree that there is a growing trend of opening new sugar mills in southern States of India? Discuss…

Question

Do you agree that there is a growing trend of opening new sugar mills in southern States of India? Discuss with justification.

Ghissu Editorial · Accepted Answer

New sugar mills have largely come up in peninsular India, especially Maharashtra and Karnataka, because of a frost-free climate, higher-sucrose cane, cooperatives and irrigation. The trend is uneven, as water stress halted new Marathwada licences after 2016 and Uttar Pradesh revived through the Co-0238 variety.

**Introduction**

India's sugar industry began in the sub-tropical Ganga plains of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, but over recent decades many new mills have come up in peninsular India, though unevenly.

**Why New Mills Favour the Peninsular States**

SKETCH: comparison | Peninsular vs North Indian Cane
a: Peninsular belt
b: Northern plains
- Tropical, frost-free :: Sub-tropical, winter frost
- Higher cane yield :: Lower cane yield
- Longer crushing season :: Shorter crushing season
- Newer, larger mills :: Older, smaller mills

1. **Agro-climatic edge**: The frost-free climate and Deccan soils give thicker cane with higher sucrose, so each tonne yields more sugar.
2. **Cooperative model**: Since the Pravara cooperative at Loni (1950), farmer-owned mills have spread across Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat.
3. **Assured irrigation**: Krishna, Godavari and Kaveri irrigation supports a 12 to 18 month cane crop.
4. **Scale and by-products**: Large new mills with co-generation and distilleries made Maharashtra the top producer in the early 2010s.

**Limits of the Southern Trend**

1. **Water stress**: Cane uses most of Maharashtra's irrigation water, and after the 2016 Latur water trains the state stopped licensing new mills in Marathwada.
2. **Uneven south**: Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh saw closures and sick mills in drought years, so growth is concentrated in two states.
3. **Northern revival**: The Co-0238 variety lifted recovery in Uttar Pradesh, which regained the top spot in the late 2010s.
4. **Regulatory brake**: The 15 km distance norm under the Sugarcane (Control) Order, 1966 limits clustering of mills.

**Conclusion**

The statement is largely valid for Maharashtra and Karnataka, where climate, cooperatives and irrigation drew new mills. But water scarcity and the north's recovery mean future growth must rest on drip-irrigated cane and the ethanol economy rather than simple expansion.

Do you agree that there is a growing trend of opening new sugar mills in southern States of India? Discuss with justification.

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