The crackdown on sugar hoarders launched by the Punjab government appears to have started showing results as wholesale price of sugar in the state has dipped by Rs 200 per quintal, although traders term it as a temporary correction due to panic in the market after raids.
However, retail prices continued to remain firm at Rs 33-34 per kg as retailers were reluctant to bring them down in tune with the wholesale rates.
The wholesale rates of sugar have come down to Rs 3,000 per quintal against Rs 3,200 per quintal as was ten days back, traders said. “Wholesale rates (of sugar) have come down to Rs 3000 per quintal as a result of tough measures taken by the state government,” Ludhiana-based sugar trader Devinder Singh said.
As part of its measures to keep a check on black marketeers, Punjab Food and Civil Supplies Department conducted raids on a Ludhiana-based sugar trader two days ago and recovered sugar to the tune of 1.07 lakh quintals worth Rs 39 crore, which has been considered one of the highest ever sugar seizures in the state.
About two weeks ago, the department with the help of the Police also seized 20,000 quintals of sugar at Rajpura following a tip off that the large quantity of sugar was stocked by a sugar mill.
