An amendment to the sugar Export Promotion Act (EPA) is on the cards with the Prime Minister, Mr. H. D. Deve Gowda, scheduled to consider decanalisation of sugar exports next week. The Food Minister, Mr. Devendra Prasad Yadav, may buckle under pressure and approve the move despite opposition from officials of his Ministry, sources indicated. The urgency to clear decanalisation stems from the fact that no export agency has been nominated to handle the 10 lakh tonnes export authorisation cleared by the Union Cabinet a month ago.

SREB to step up grid frequency

A meeting of the Southern Regional Electricity Board has decided to step up the grid frequency to a more acceptable level of 48.2 Hz. The meeting was attended by the chairmen of the four southern State electricity boards, officials from the National Thermal Power Corporation, Neyveli Lignite Corp, Powergrid Corp, and the Central Electricity Authority. The meeting reviewed the grid performance during the past three months and also discussed measures to improve the frequency, prevent overdrawal by some States and maintain the frequency at a higher level to prevent interruptions to the grid.

EU reprieve on sugar quota

India has managed to secure a temporary reprieve from a cutback of its preferential white sugar export quota of 10,000 tonnes to the European Union. The EU, which had earlier threatened to prune India's quota by 2,500 tonnes following its misuse, is understood to have indicated that there would be no cut this year. However, as the EU plans to conduct an independent enquiry on the matter, India may come under the chopping block next year, say sources.

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