ISLAMABAD, June 17: Some sugar mills have stopped or reduced releasing sufficient quantity of sugar to the market, because of which the price level has not come down to the desirable level.

An official told Dawn on Saturday that it was observed that 42 mills were not releasing adequate quantities of sugar, which led to issuing of show-cause notices to them in March.

According to the official, for the past two months the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) had stopped releasing the report about the quantity of sugar produced and released and the stocks of each mills.

“We have not received any statement from the PSMA during the past two months. They are not releasing it on the pretext that the government uses the statistics against them,” an food ministry official said.

An announcement of the Monopoly Control Authority issued on Saturday advised sugar mills to releasing sufficient quantity of sugar so that scarcity of the commodity was not created in the market.

The mills which were issued notices were afforded opportunity for hearing in the first week of April. After due process, 42 mills were directed to release at least 58.31 per cent of their production by April 30 and report compliance to the authority.

Of the mills, 33 have not reported compliance of the orders. Notices for hearing have been issued to the mills to explain why penalty should not be imposed for non-compliance of the orders.

Sugar mills reported production of 2.907 million tons of sugar approximately. Against this, sales and lifting of sugar was 1.738 million tons up to May 31.

The industry was holding stock of approximately 1.169 million tons on May 31.

Four mills have not provided data. Action is being taken against them separately.