- 2 months ago
Join India Today for a debate on rising food inflation, particularly sugar and onion prices, ahead of the festive season. Congress National Spokesperson Pankhuri Pathak targeted the central government, alleging that while sugar prices rose by 40%, the government kept the country distracted with political debates. She remarked, 'The BJP doesn't have answers. It only has excuses.' Pathak questioned the diversion of sugarcane for ethanol production and India's shift from being a sugar exporter to an importer. Responding to the allegations, BJP National Media Co-convener Siddhartha Yadav stated that sugarcane diversion for ethanol was reduced from 12% to 9% and pointed out a 16% global surge in sugar prices. He highlighted government steps, including stock limits on sugar dealers and duty-free imports of raw sugar, to check hoarding and stabilize domestic prices.
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00:00All right, for our face-off this evening, joining me is Pankhuri Pathak, National Spokesperson
00:04Congress. We'll also be joined shortly by Siddharth Yadav, National Media Co-Convenor
00:09Bharatiya Janata Party. Let's begin with Pankhuri Pathak into this conversation.
00:14Ms. Pathak, the BJP would say that, and that is the explanation that they are giving, that
00:20where onion prices are concerned, there is a Kandai Express and there will be no shortage
00:25in due time. Secondly, where you have targeted the government on sugar prices, you allow
00:29that the government is trying to divert sugarcane for ethanol production. The government has
00:35rubbished that, say that there is a global rise in sugar prices and India is only facing
00:40the aftermath of the same.
00:45Well, I think the BJP doesn't have answers, it only has excuses. Since the last one month,
00:51while the BJP kept the country trapped in the debate over Vande Matra, sugar prices rose by
00:5840%. In eight of the Indian states today, sugar has crossed 65 rupees a kg. And it's just not
01:06sugar or onions. There is a significant food inflation that the common man of the country
01:12is experiencing today. Everything from flour to rice to cumin to turmeric to your regular
01:20mustard oil and groundnut oil, everything is expensive. And this is happening right before
01:26the major Hindu festival season. I know the BJP loves to play the Hindu part all the time and
01:32during elections, they ask questions like, Bidjali, are you getting into Hindu Teohar or Eid? They love
01:40saying things like that. But are they prepared to give any relief to the common man just before we have
01:46our
01:46our Janmashmi, our Dashehra, our Raksha Bandhan. All the Hindu festivals are lined up. But today,
01:53all that they have to offer to the Indian public is bitterness by increasing the prices of sugar.
01:59From being the largest exporter of sugar, we have today been forced to become an importer.
02:06So obviously, questions will be asked more so. Because in 2014, one of the strongest pitch of the BJP
02:14was bohat hui bhangai ki mar. And we all know where we are today, where we are down the line.
02:21Today, the rupee has weakened by 58 percent. Patrol is expensive by 43 percent. Diesel is more expensive
02:30by around 60 percent. And the government doesn't have any answers to all these questions that the
02:36common man is asking. They would rather keep on debating bande matram instead of preparing
02:42to tackle the price rise. And whenever the time comes to answer, they'll say, oh, these are the
02:47global factors. When the crude oil prices go down, Indians don't get any relief. While all other
02:55countries, in all other countries, the consumers get relief. Indians don't get any relief. But Indians
03:00are made to suffer every single time. The excuse remains the same. And when it comes to ethanol,
03:07of course, the government will have to answer because they promised that there would not be
03:12a shortage of sugar, that there is enough sugar, there is enough sugarcane. Ethanol is not going
03:18to cause any disruption in sugar production. But today, we are seeing the results. So of course,
03:23the government will have to answer whether promoting ethanol is more easy or providing sugar
03:29to common influence. Is there a priority or is it giving...
03:33Okay. I just want to bring in Siddharth Yadar, the newly minted national media co-convener.
03:38Congratulations on that, Siddharth. But to bring you in on the latest attack by the opposition,
03:44which has also been felt by the people of this country. The question is very clear, Siddharth.
03:49It seems that the government has failed to manage its priorities right. Because you might give the
03:55sugar spike and the hike in sugar prices to a global trend, you might say because of excessive
04:00rain, certain states, there has been crop failure. But the government should have factored all of that
04:06in, provided that a sizable chunk of sugarcane has been diverted towards ethanol as well.
04:13Maybe that should have been stopped because we should have assessed the problem earlier.
04:21Good evening and good evening to all your viewers. To begin with, my learned friend from the Congress
04:27Party was saying that while the country, while the BGP was busy debating Vande Matram, you know,
04:33such and such things were happening in the background. I think there was no need for a
04:36debate on Vande Matram. Had you not disrespected Vande Matram, there would not have been any debate.
04:41But leave that matter for another debate, I think. Today, we are discussing a very important issue.
04:46And I would want to come down to very point-wise answer the myths that the Congress Party and the
04:52opposition is trying to sell. But to begin with, for the ethanol part of this, you would,
04:59Preeti, would appreciate that before any of such crisis or any of such price rise, as you would term
05:05it, happened, the government had already cut down the diversion of sugar from 12% from last year to
05:149% this year for ethanol consumption. Now, it's a very known fact that for the farmers to have a
05:21security of payment from the mills, the surplus of sugar every year has to be diverted someplace so
05:28that the farmers can be paid. Because this is not like Congress times that the farmers are not paid for
05:33two years, three years. Last year, the sugar farmers were paid 99%. This year, already they have been
05:40paid 97%. So, it's a very welcome change. It's a change in policy that has benefited the grassroot
05:47farmers. And such change should continue. It's already down. So, ethanol has nothing to do with
05:53the current price rise. This is point number one. Point number two, for sugar, it's not us who are
05:58saying that there's a global price rise. There is a global price rise. I have with me 30th June 2026,
06:05the global price for sugar was $474 a ton. 20th August 2026, it rose up to $552 a ton. $552,
06:1516% in seven weeks. So, if that happens in the global market, it would definitely resonate to the
06:24domestic market as well. But Preeti, leave that apart as well. For sugar, for onions,
06:30the government has taken eight measures for sugar and for onions, the government has taken five steps.
06:39All steps have been in the direction to ensure that no hoarding happens, nobody increases the price,
06:46nobody, you know, there are no mischief elements in the market who would raise the price or who would
06:51want to, you know, in this situation, try to take advantage of that situation. And that's what we
06:57are doing. All right. Call cut over, I think. All right. Okay. We're going to try and connect back
07:03to you. You've made your point. Pankhudi Pathak, okay. Now, there's a detailed explanation given by
07:09Siddharth on the various data points. On why A, which I pointed out earlier, that the government says
07:15that there has been a global spike in sugar prices where sugar is concerned. Number two,
07:21there have been states which are sugarcane producing states and they've taken a hit because
07:24of excessive rains. So, there has been a fall in terms of the crop as well. Siddharth says that
07:31the government diversion of sugarcane from 12% had already gone to 9% for ethanol. So, ethanol is
07:39really not the point problem. It's a larger issue which the government is now addressing.
07:47First of all, unlike what my friend from the BJP said, price rise and the current situation of food
07:54inflation is not a myth. Regular Indian consumers know this, that there has been a substantial rise
08:02over the past few months and everything that is essential to the Indian kitchen, to the Indian
08:08household is now more expensive than it was a few months back. When the BJP blames the global
08:15factors, there have always been global pressures. What is the job of the government? The government's
08:21job is to make policies that absorb those global pressures and ensure that a certain kind of relief
08:28is at least given to the consumers, that the consumers don't have to bear the front of whatever
08:33global or international pressures are present. The BJP government has always been unprepared to deal
08:39with such issues. And when you make promises, like in 2018, if I remember it was 2018 when Nitin
08:48Gadkariji said that once we come out with ethanol policy and P20, there will be a substantial decrease
08:56in the prices of diesel and petrol. But that never happened. We even gave a figure of 50 to 55
09:02rupees that
09:02the prices are going to come down to 55 rupees. But what has happened today? And of course, the higher
09:08fuel
09:08prices are also contributing to food inflation because it's all interrelated. The crux is that the BJP has
09:16been unable to control price rises. They would rather keep the country engaged in different and
09:25diversionary tactics and debates that are not essential to common man's daily life. But they should have been prepared
09:33for this crisis situation. We understand that the government is going to do some kind of damage control.
09:39But the government should also answer why was it not prepared for this situation? Were you not aware
09:44that there are going to be certain global pressures? Were you not aware? Don't you have a system in place
09:50that can
09:51predict that there is going to be a crop shortage or whatever other issues today the BJP is talking about?
09:57This should have been planned in advance. And this is where the government has speak. So today, even if you
10:03say that, you know, we are going to bring in this express and the prices are going to go down,
10:07you need to answer for your unpreparedness.
10:09Ms. Pataghan, come back to you. Siddhati Adav, you know, the government has given out a detailed clarification on the
10:15rise of both sugar and onion prices and the weather, global pulls and tugs, all of that has a part
10:20to play in it. But leading economists, and I'll just give you an example. I think Ashok Gulati, Professor Ashok
10:26Gulati,
10:27leading economist in India, is very clear, where he simply says that the government has miscalculated the shortage. It is
10:33in effect, the government should have known that this was going to happen and we've reacted too late.
10:43No, Preeti, first of all, there is no shortage. That's to begin with. The country has enough surplus. Even after
10:52the allowed export of onions, we still have surplus after that.
10:56We have stopped our exports. We are, the country has full stock. There's nothing to panic. This is point number
11:01one. The ministry has given a very detailed explanation to that.
11:05Point number two, the Congress, you know, might be thinking that they are away from the issues.
11:10You know, what most leading economists seem to suggest is that the reduction in import duties which have happened now
11:16should have taken place six to eight months ago.
11:24Six to eight months ago, Preeti, neither the prices had risen, nor the situation was there. We had enough surplus
11:32sugar in this country.
11:35The production was even higher than last year or last to last year for that matter. Everything was under control.
11:41Diversion to ethanol was lesser.
11:43We were in a position that it was higher. What the country has done today, the steps that we have
11:49taken, the stock limit of 400 tons on sugar dealers countrywide for bulk consumers to not hold for more than
11:5515 days,
11:56the joint state and center teams to go and check for mills. No mills should hold sugar for more than
12:02seven days after sale or a duty-free import for 10 LMT of raw sugar are the measures which have
12:09to be taken now.
12:11The country has responded, the government has responded at the very right time. The prices that we are speaking about,
12:17it's not one…
12:18But Chidat, why isn't the government looking at maybe capping sugar prices?
12:22When the prices have risen and because the consumption of sugar is to the very essential nature of all consumers,
12:33we have a festive season coming ahead.
12:36Every year, Preeti, if you would see the chart of sugar price in this country, it has been average.
12:40Since we came to power, the sugar price in this country has been between 45 to 50.
12:44Every year during festive season, it goes up to 58 and a half, 49, 49 and a half.
12:53But the average, the window that it has been under is between 40 to 50 when we came to power.
13:00It's not like UPA when the food inflation would be in double digits.
13:04I have some data because my learned friend was trying to draw a comparison.
13:08Retail inflation today in July 2026 is 4.45 percent.
13:12Food inflation is 5.52 percent.
13:14But what was the UPA-2 average?
13:1610.25 percent.
13:18Peak was 12.5 percent.
13:20Food inflation was 12.2 percent.
13:2212.2 percent.
13:24Inflation in 22 out of 24 months just preceding 2014 was 9 percent on an average.
13:329 percent.
13:33So when, you know, the UPA tries to build this.
13:36But, you know, let me highlight one more thing, Preeti.
13:38From past three months, we were hearing from the Congress Party that the money given to the farmers, to onion
13:44producers should be more.
13:46Suddenly now there's a shift and the Congress Party says, no, forget about that money given to the farmers.
13:51The prices of onions should go down.
13:53But leaving that apart also, what farmers are getting today, today on 24th of August, they're getting 4,200 a
13:59quintal in Nasik.
14:01It's 6.40 percent more of what Congress was itself demanding.
14:05But, Siddharth, let me ask you this question again.
14:07Why isn't the government today…
14:08Just love it 10 more seconds.
14:10No, I'll just, you know, you can take the time but just answer this question as well because a lot
14:13of people are asking this question.
14:15Why isn't the government looking to cap the maximum price of sugar which will in effect stop hoarding and profiteering?
14:28Preeti, decisions of such nature have to become, have to be taken in staged manners.
14:34When government has already taken eight steps, the prices for sugar have started to go down.
14:40What it was yesterday, it's lower today.
14:42It's going to be lower tomorrow.
14:44If those measures would not take place in an effect, the Essential Commodities Act is already in place, the capping
14:50of prices would also happen.
14:51But it has to happen in a staged manner.
14:53What we are speaking about is a 15, 20-day hike of a sugar price.
14:57It's going down already and it's going to go down to back to normal prices in no time.
15:02So, you know, when something comes up, it has to be assessed holistically.
15:06It's not like and just allow me 10 seconds because we had seen prices of such essential commodities like sugar,
15:15like onions, very high, very high.
15:18The prices today are even lower, lower than what it was in 2013, 2014.
15:24I have the 2013 prices in front of me.
15:2660 rupees in Delhi, 80-85 in Chennai, 60-70 in Kolkata, Mumbai is 63, 70-80 across the country.
15:3712 years back, Preeti, 12 years back.
15:4012 years later, we are around the same prices.
15:43A minor hike has happened for a brief time.
15:46The country, the government has taken all steps to contain it.
15:49The government is vigilantly monitoring the entire situation and ensuring that the prices would go down.
15:56It's in, you know, consultation with all stakeholders and we are very sure that such prices will go down.
16:02No myths in this time at least should come out.
16:04This is the request to the opposition, you know, particularly.
16:08It's not a time to spread myths.
16:10It's a time for facts.
16:12Okay.
16:12I agree with that.
16:14There is never a good time to spread any myths.
16:17It's also always a good time to stick to facts.
16:20So, therefore, the last brief that we've got from the government seemed to also suggest that we are facing a
16:25shortage.
16:26We are importing sugar.
16:28So, therefore, the question, Siddharth, that if we, what you are pointing out is that we are not facing a
16:32shortage.
16:33So, if we are facing a shortage, we are importing sugar.
16:36The next step would have been to cap prices because there is hoarding, there is profiteering which is going on.
16:41And it's happening bang in the middle of festive season.
16:43So, every household is facing the pinch.
16:45Final comments.
16:45I want to bring in Pankhari Patak back into this conversation.
16:49Very quickly, make your point, Pankhari, because Siddharth has a point.
16:52It's not the first time we are debating inflation at the time of the festive season.
16:57The demand always rises.
16:58And we have felt the pinch.
17:00And there are ways which the government uses to cushion that.
17:07The BGP spokesperson said that there was no shortage until six months back and this just happened recently.
17:13So, I don't know what the government is doing if they cannot even scientifically predict and plan for what's going
17:19to happen after six months.
17:20Secondly, you don't become an importer from an exporter overnight.
17:26So, obviously, it took time and it took certain policies on the part of the government, change in policies that
17:33led to this development.
17:34When the government is trying to shove down E20 down the throats of Indian consumers, I think they should have
17:41planned better about how they are going to manage the shortage of sugar.
17:45So, I think that is the question that the Indian public is going to keep on asking that what is
17:51the hurry to make policies around E20 and make sure that everyone uses E20 when you have not even sufficiently
17:58planned for it.
17:59Lastly, I would just like to say that the government should right now think about giving relief to the consumers.
18:05You cannot keep on denying that there is a shortage.
18:08This is a tactic that the BJP always uses when there is a crisis, be it COVID, be it LPG
18:15shortage, they'll first deny it and act only later.
18:18So, I think it's high time the BJP should start as a crisis.
18:20I just want to bring in, I want to bring in Siddharth Yadav back into this conversation.
18:24Siddharth, you know, because you like sticking to facts, there's data.
18:27I have a report by Isma, which is the industry body where sugar is concerned.
18:32And Isma flagged a fall in production in January itself.
18:36So, in January, if a fall in production was flagged, second point to that, we were still exporting sugar.
18:46And we were exporting sugar all the way till May, even though in January it was flagged that there could
18:53be less production of sugar.
18:55That it very well could happen that we will see a fall in production.
18:59January, February, March, April, we continue to export sugar.
19:05Only in March do we stop exporting sugar.
19:09We could have avoided all of that.
19:11Siddharth, that's the question.
19:17No, Preeti, I think, you know, the data that I have in front of me, and it's not a report,
19:21it's the clear data, which is, you know, which has been put out to the public from the ministry as
19:27well.
19:27We, the expected production this year is 306 LMT.
19:32We were expecting around 343 LMT.
19:34All of us know because of red rot and top boral disease.
19:38True, but Siddharth, that was red flagged in January itself.
19:42We had a less up production.
19:43But that was flagged in January.
19:45The question I want to ask is, does your and my data tally on the fact?
19:51Because my data suggests that we continue to export sugar all the way till May.
19:57Did we do that?
20:01No, Preeti, absolutely not.
20:04I think, you know, the season of sugar, you know, and until the final harvest also comes, it's until April
20:13that you finally understand that what the production is going to be.
20:16So, whosoever claims that it's going to be in January or it was already flagged in February or we had
20:20a shortage.
20:21Sir, it's not whosoever, it's the sugar regulating industry body, Isma.
20:27I'm responding to that.
20:29Yes, please.
20:29I'm responding to that.
20:30Even appreciating their fact, even appreciating what they are saying, we have enough buffer in the country because of the
20:39structural change that the government brought in 2017, Preeti.
20:43We first time we brought the price stabilization fund.
20:46It's a big 10,000 crore fund which is given to the ministry, which is for the particular purpose, which
20:51we never had institutionally in the country.
20:54So, whenever a shortage happens or there's a lesser production, the government can also buy, procure, save, hold.
21:01No, fair point.
21:01But Siddharth, I'm just taking you back to timelines.
21:04That's also in case.
21:05In Maharashtra, which is one of our, other than West Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, which is one of our key sugar
21:11producing states, all the way in last October, had an issue where weather was concerned.
21:16Excessive rain in Maharashtra, excessive rain in Maharashtra, excessive rain in Maharashtra last October, red rot that you speak of
21:22and top borer disease in sugarcane crop in UP and Maharashtra had impacted production in the cycle of last October
21:31to all the way to Jan.
21:32You know, there are two seasons where sugarcane is produced in this country.
21:37So, it was already flagged at that point of time.
21:40And there was an assumption which was made on this data by ISMA that we are going to have a
21:46fall in production.
21:47Yet, we continue to export all the way to May.
21:54Priti, our domestic consumption of sugar every year is 280 to 290 LMT.
22:00We were expecting a bumper 343 this year.
22:04The actual came out to be 306.
22:06Even with the actual, we have more than the domestic consumption, than the export, and then the buffer.
22:13Even with the actual consumption.
22:15So, the analysis I am appreciating with whatever body has come out with whatever analysis.
22:20But the true picture only came out when it was added up with the global surge of prices in sugar.
22:25When that also reflected on the domestic quo.
22:28Until today, we are, you know, very confident that the buffer that the government has been holding, it's in place.
22:34The measures that have been taken up.
22:36The prices are already going down, Priti.
22:38You check the prices from yesterday, from day before yesterday, and from today.
22:42You put out a comparison.
22:43It has gone down.
22:43It's a decline already.
22:45And, you know, the decline will continue to happen.
22:48Yes.
22:48So, when the decline has started for any such prices, it's going to go down more.
22:53The situation is under control.
22:55And it's because of the institutional mechanisms that have been put in place by the government and a very quick
23:00response that has been put out.
23:01It has been a very quick, vigilant response by the government to act upon this space.
23:06And we are very confident that it's going to be in no time a very normal situation back.
23:10All right.
23:11You know, with that, we're going to leave it at that.
23:13Thank you for both our guests for joining us this evening.
23:15Appreciate it.