Farmer groups, political parties, and others have welcomed the Centre’s decision to withdraw its April 20, 2026, draft amendments to the Sugarcane Control Order of 1966.
The Bhartiya Kisan Union, which is not affiliated to any political party, had strongly opposed some of the changes, including those that sought to regulate the unorganised ‘gur’ and ‘khandsari’ units. The move reflects the government's responsiveness to concerns raised by stakeholders, including numerous suggestions submitted, and that the withdrawal is in the interest of sugarcane growers. Khandsari is a traditional, unrefined raw sugar derived from cane.
Several concerns had been raised regarding certain provisions of the draft order, particularly their potential impact on sugarcane farmers as well as the jaggery and khandsari industries.
The union claimed that thousands of people had submitted their suggestions via email through the organisation. In Bijnor district alone, which is a major sugarcane-growing region in western Uttar Pradesh, nearly 2,000 farmers sent their recommendations through the union.
According to rough estimates, around 31 per cent of India's annual sugarcane production of around 435 million tonnes (MT) is used by the gur, khandsari, and jaggery units. This number varies from year to year.
Gur and khandsari making units are largely micro and small enterprises that are often run by cane farmers themselves or by local entrepreneurs.
As per some estimates, the major 10-12 sugarcane growing districts in UP account for the bulk of such gur- and khandsari-making units that run on kolhu-crushers, as they are called in local parlance.
By some estimates, there are 2,000-3,000 such local manufacturing units in each major sugarcane growing district. Most of these are in the prime sugarcane growing areas of Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Saharanpur, Bijnor, Amroha, and Bareilly.
Meanwhile, according to an office memorandum issued by the Department of Food and Public Distribution issued yesterday, a large number of suggestions and comments were received from state governments and other stakeholders during the consultation period.
After reviewing these submissions, the Centre concluded that the proposed order required further deliberation and examination and decided to withdraw the draft for now.
The Left-leaning All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), too, celebrated the government’s withdrawal of the draft order, calling it a direct result of the relentless agitation and nationwide campaign led by sugarcane farmers under its banner.
“This is a victory of the toiling sugarcane farmers of India. The government has blinked,” said Rajan Kshirsagar, president of the AIKS. He said the union had launched an immediate and aggressive campaign as soon as the draft order was released. Over the past five weeks, AIKS conducted conventions, street protests, and farmer assemblies across Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra, he added.
Meanwhile, the Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (independent charge) Jayant Chaudhury in a social media post, also welcomed the decision to the move, saying the decision reflects the government’s commitment to take policy decisions based on wider consultative process.
Farmers' organisations had met Chaudhary a few weeks earlier to present their concerns regarding the order. The minister, in turn, is believed to have conveyed these concerns to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
 "Farmer groups welcome Centre's pullback of changes to Sugarcane Control law")
