Key decisions taken at CCEA meeting

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved an assistance of over Rs 5500 crore to support the sugar sector by way of offsetting cost of cane and to facilitate export of sugar from the country. The move will improve liquidity of the industry enabling them to clear cane price arrears of farmers.

Due to excess carryover stocks and indication of similar excess production in the ensuing sugar season 2018-19, the liquidity problem of the sugar mills is likely to persist in the coming sugar season too. As a result, cane price arrears of sugarcane farmers may also peak at unprecedented high level, the government said in a statement.

It added that due to depressed market sentiments and crash in sugar prices, the liquidity position of sugar mills was adversely affected in the sugar season 2017-18 leading to accumulation of cane price dues of sugarcane farmers which reached an alarming level of about Rs. 23,232 crores in the last week of May, 2018.

The CCEA also approved construction of new domestic terminal building and other allied structures at Patna airport at an estimated cost of Rs.1,216.90 crore. After construction of the new terminal building, the passenger handling capacity of the airport will increase enhance to 4.5 Million Passengers Per Annum (MPPA) from current 0.7 MPPA. The project is a part of the 'Package for Bihar', announced by the Prime Minister.

In addition to all these, transfer (disinvestment) of incomplete projects of Hotel Gulmarg Ashok in Gulmarg and Hotel Patliputra Ashok in Patna to the respective state governments was also cleared.

The CCEA also approved the New Broad Gauge Electrified Line of 294.53 route kms from Katghora to Dongargarh in order to provide rail connectivity to unserved areas of Chhattishgarh. This will help in opening up the area for industrial development through movement of freight to the busy Jharsuguda-Nagpur section of Howrah Mumbai route by avoiding busy yards of Bilaspur, Champa and Durg stations. The Korba, Bilaspur, Mungeli, Kabirdham and Rajnandgaon districts of Chhattisgarh will be benefitted by this new rail line. The estimated cost of this project is Rs. 5950.47 crore to be implemented by a Project SPV, namely Chhattisgarh Katghora-Dongarhgarh Railway Limited, with equity participation of Ministry of Railways and Government of Chhattisgarh through Chhattisgarh Railway Corporation Ltd (CRCL) and private stakeholders.