Pralhad Joshi, the minister in charge of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, has issued a call for sugar mills to escalate the manufacture of ethanol, with an aim of readying it for international markets. In response to requests from these mills for raised ethanol prices, he offered reassurance that the government’s decisions would align with the objectives of the three primary stakeholders – those people farming sugarcane, the mills processing it, and the consumer base. During his speech at the recent India Sugar and Bio-Energy Conference, Joshi discussed how far India has advanced in relation to ethanol blending, securing energy, and nurturing prosperity in rural areas.
In 2014, ethanol accounted for a modest 1.5 per cent of petrol mixture, whereas in today’s climate that figure stands at an impressive 20 per cent. This signifies a thirteen-fold augmentation over the course of only 11 years. Utilizing ethanol as a substitute for petrol has not only made India more energy secure but has resulted in substantial savings of ?1.44 lakh crore in foreign exchange, also providing economic and environmental advantages.
Joshi pointed out the considerable transformation the Indian sugar industry has seen throughout the past decade. Serving as the powerhouse behind this metamorphosis is the state policy on biofuels and ethanol-Sheathed program. An emphasized spotlight on nurturing biofuels and emphasizing a varied range of products from sugar mills has led to the creation of a novel renewable resource.
In an expression of the government’s efforts, Joshi remarked that their initiatives have permitted timely remuneration for farmers while also bolstering the revenues of both the growers and the mills. For the sugarcane production period of 2023–24, 99 per cent of the payments due to the farmers have already been cleared, with over 96 per cent of payments for the ongoing season also settled.
The pursuit of mixing ethanol with diesel has been well-documented by the government, but as of now, this interface has yet to yield the intended effect, with continuous experiments underway to pinpoint how sustainable biofuel could feasibly be blended with diesel. Additionally, Joshi mentioned the possibility of rerouting 4.5 to 5 million tonnes of sugar (expressed in terms of sucrose) for the production of ethanol, whilst also petitioning for consent to export an additional 2 million tonnes.
Estimates regarding sugarcane production for the current year are anticipated from the Agriculture Ministry, which would provide an educated assumption on sugar output. The Ministry is actively implementing digital surveys of crops and cross-referencing these results with physically substantiated data. This approach promises to heighten the precision by which future crop production can be projected.
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