India’s sugar output may be on a recovery path, but Tamil Nadu, one of the largest producers, could be staring at a slump in production this year and the next as well. For Tamil Nadu, which is grappling with record low sugar production, the worst is yet to come as the lingering effects of last year’s drought are seen dragging the output down 50% on year to 550,000 tn in the season started October. In 2016-17, Tamil Nadu faced the worst drought in 140 years. Sugar production in the state, which was as high as 2.5 mln tn in 2006-07, may plummet sharply in 2018-19 (Oct-Sep) because of successive years of meagre rainfall and a drop in cane acreage.