India bans sugar exports till September 30

• The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has banned the export of sugar till September 30 this year with immediate effect. 

• Earlier the exports were under a restricted category, under which a license was required for the outbound shipments.  

• The export policy of sugar (raw sugar, white sugar and refined sugar) is amended from ‘restricted’ to ‘prohibited’ with immediate effect till September 30, 2026, or until further orders, whichever is earlier, the DGFT said in a notification on May 13. 

• This order, however, does not apply to sugar being exported to the European Union and the US under the CXL and Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) arrangement, respectively.

• The arrangements allow exporters to ship specified quantities of sugar to these destinations at significantly reduced or zero customs duties.  

• The DGFT’s order is also not applicable to the shipments under the advance authorisation scheme, government-to-government exports and consignments already in the physical export pipeline.

• The move is aimed at increasing the availability of the commodity in the domestic market amid inflation concerns and uncertainty caused by the West Asia conflict.

• In October 2022, India imposed export restriction on sugar and then it was extended from time to time. 

• India is the highest producer and the second-largest exporter of sugar in the world.

• Sugar industry is an important agro-based industry that impacts rural livelihood of about 50 million sugarcane farmers and around five lakh workers directly employed in sugar mills. 

Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT)

• Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) is an attached office of the ministry of commerce and industry. Right from its inception till 1991, when liberalisation in the economic policies of the government took place, DGFT has been essentially involved in the regulation and promotion of foreign trade.

• Keeping in line with policies of liberalisation and globalisation and the overall objective of increasing exports, DGFT has been assigned the role of a “facilitator”. The transition has been from prohibition and control of imports/exports towards promotion and facilitation of exports/imports, keeping in view the interests of the country.

• This Directorate, with headquarters at New Delhi, is headed by the Director General of Foreign Trade. 

• It assists the government in formulation of Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) and is responsible for implementing the Policy and schemes under FTP with the main objective of promoting India’s exports. 

• Further, it is responsible for implementation of Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act, 1992 and Rules and Regulations notified thereunder. 

• The DGFT also issues authorisations to exporters and monitors their corresponding obligations through a network of 24 regional offices.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)