Sugar prices down 36 in Delhi

Thomas said the government has taken several measures to control prices of sugar,which includes permitting duty-free imports of raw and refined sugar up to the end of the current year and imposing a stockholding and turnover limit on dealers.

The forward market commission has suspended futures trade in sugar since May last year,he added.

8220;These measures have helped in containing the rise in prices of sugar in the domestic market,8221; the minister said.

He said the government has released around 2.7 million tonnes of sugar through the public distribution system in the last three sugar years. The sugar year runs from October to September.

During the October,2009,to July,2010,period,the government has released around 15.27 million tonnes of non-levy sugar,meant for the open market.

It released around 15.9 million tonnes of non-levy sugar in 2006-07,19.1 million tonnes in 2007-08 and 20.87 in 2008-09.