Food minister says no plan to raise import duty on sugar as of now.

Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said the government has no plan to raise import duty on sugar as of now. A fall in prices of the sugar had led to speculation that import duty would be hiked. Earlier this month, sugar mills had urged the government to raise import duty to 60% from the current 40%, as low global prices of raw sugar have made imports attractive. A rise in domestic supplies would hurt sugar prices, which have been stable for the last three months, ISMA said earlier, urging government to raise the import duty on sugar.