INTERVIEW - Cane crushing accelerates in Maharashtra

By Rajendra Jadhav

PUNE, India (Reuters) - Sugar mills in India's top producing state have accelerated cane crushing after last week's unseasonal rains and so far the state has produced higher quantity of the sweetener than last year, a government official said.

"Rains had disrupted crushing last week for almost four days, but now fields are dry and crushing is going on in full momentum," Rajendra Chavan, sugar commissioner of Maharastra, told Reuters in an interview on Friday.

As on Nov. 15, 114 sugar mills in the state have begun operations and produced 366,200 tonnes of sugar compared to 325,000 tonnes produced by 97 sugar mills in the year-ago period.

Last year, 143 sugar mills had undertaken crushing and this year same number of mills are likely to go for crushing, he said.

In Uttar Pradesh, the second biggest sugar producer, crushing has been held by a dispute over cane price. However, in Maharashtra, mills are paying much higher price for cane procurement and operations are running smoothly, he added.

The government on Friday said it would amend a new sugarcane pricing rule, bowing to protests held in the capital by farmers demanding higher prices for their produce.

Sugar prices in India have been rising on a delay in cane crushing.

"The pace of crushing is accelerating, I think by this month end all mills should begin crushing," Chavan said.