Retail sugar prices in Pune have fallen to Rs 58-60 a kilogram and jaggery prices to Rs 65-70 a kilogram, according to traders cited in a report by Loksatta – Pune. The decline comes ahead of the Gauri-Ganpati festival period, when demand for both products is expected to increase among households, sweet makers and food businesses.
Sugar prices have dropped by about Rs 15 a kilogram after rising steadily during the past month. Jaggery prices have fallen by Rs 8-10 a kilogram, traders said. The reported retail prices mark a reversal from the recent increase, when sugar prices in Pune’s retail market had reached Rs 70-75 a kilogram.
Vijay Gujarati, a sugar trader at the Bhawani Peth wholesale market, said sugar was selling at Rs 44 a kilogram in the first week of July. Prices subsequently increased by Rs 20-25 a kilogram over the month, he said, creating concern among consumers before the festival season.
Gujarati attributed the recent decline to the central government’s decision to import 1 million tonnes of sugar from overseas. He also said the government had decided to regularly inspect stocks held by traders and sugar-processing businesses and collect related information online. These comments were reported by Loksatta – Pune and were not accompanied in the supplied report by a government notification or other primary document.
The report linked the earlier price rise partly to delayed sugarcane planting after weaker rainfall. The delay had raised concerns that sugar mills could begin operations later than usual and that the new sugar season could be postponed. Traders said these supply concerns contributed to the rise in sugar prices during July and August.
Jaggery prices moved in the same direction as sugar prices. Jawaharlal Bothra, a jaggery trader at the Market Yard’s Bhusar Market, said demand had increased around Raksha Bandhan before prices declined by Rs 8-10 a kilogram. He said demand for jaggery was expected to continue through Gauri-Ganpati, Navratri and Diwali.
Wholesale sugar was quoted at Rs 5,500-6,000 a quintal, according to the market figures published in the report. Premium jaggery was priced at Rs 5,900-6,200 a quintal, while lower-grade jaggery was quoted at Rs 5,300-5,500 a quintal. Box-packed jaggery was listed at Rs 5,500-6,800 a quintal.
Traders said the sugar and jaggery markets had experienced an unusually sharp rise, describing it as the first such surge in about 25 years. The immediate market movement in Pune will now be shaped by festival demand, the availability of stocks and the implementation of the government measures cited in the report.
