‘Poor bear the impact’: Sugar prices soar in India, souring festive season

Jai Krishan, a 43-year-old labourer from Bihar in northern India, has saved 15,000 rupees ($160) to travel home from Indian-administered Kashmir, where he works, to celebrate Diwali with his family in November.Each year, he buys boxes of sweets — laddu, barfi and kaju katli — to take home as gifts for his family and friends. He spends about $35 just on sweets for Diwali, he says, as he prepares afternoon tea for himself and his roommates in their rented accommodation in the Hawal area of Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir’s largest city.“For someone from a lower-middle-class family, this is a lot of money. But Diwali is one of the most important festivals for Hindus and you cannot skip celebrating it,” he says.This year, though, Krishan fears he may have to cut back on other purchases — such as toys and clothes — to keep his limited budget under control. The price of sugar has risen sharply in recent months, with retail prices reaching as high as 75 rupees ($0.79) per kilogramme (2.2 pounds) — up from 40 rupees in September 2025 — in some markets, raising concerns that the cost of sweets could also increase.“I can reduce my spending on clothes or other things, but I cannot retur...