Pak court orders release of detained Indian sugar

New Delhi, Oct. 4 The month-long saga involving detention of Indian sugar by Pakistani customs authorities on public health grounds is finally over.

6,800 t Released

The Lahore High Court has ordered the release of nearly 6,800 tonnes of imported Indian sugar lying in railway godowns, having been seized for allegedly containing high levels of sulphur dioxide and not confirming to required ICUMSA (International Commission for Uniform Methods of Sugar Analysis) standards.

In his order on Wednesday, Mr Justice Syed Hamid Ali Shah directed the release of the impounded sugar, dismissing the petition of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA) and allowing the two importers, Rana Brothers and Sawera Group, to sell the product in the local market.

Held up since Aug

While Rana Brothers had imported one rake of 2,392 tonnes from the Saraswati Sugar Mills at Yamunanagar (Haryana), Sawera had bought two rakes of 2,272 tonnes and 2,093 tonnes from the Seksaria Biswan Sugar Factory at Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh.

The consignments had entered Pakistan through the Attari-Wagah border around August-end; and had since been held up at the railway godowns.

‘Irrelevant’

The importers challenged the detention, stating that the issue of public health had not been raised when 7.46 lakh tonnes (lt) of Indian sugar were imported by the Trading Corporation of Pakistan and sold across utility stores in the country.

The controversy over ICUMSA, they pointed out, was irrelevant because it pertained merely to the colour of the sugar and not to whether it was fit for human consumption. They also contended that the sugar was being consumed in several countries including
Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

The imported product was of 140 ICUMSA, which was well within the prescribed standard for plantation white sugar even if not for refined sugar.

PCSIR FINDING

As regards sulphur dioxide, it was pointed out that the substance was used as a preservative in several edibles, including fruit juices and colas, in volumes higher than the ones found in the imported Indian sugar.

The first petition against the imports was filed by Mr Luqman Ahmad, a sugarcane grower.

The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association moved the second petition asking the court to stop the marketing and sale of Indian sugar in Pakistan. Its counsel, Mr Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, said the imported sugar was hazardous to health.

He also contended that Indian sugar was being imported despite the fact that Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) laboratories had declared presence of 30 mg per kg sulphur in it in the past.