New Delhi, Nov 12: Centre is exploring legal options in the wake of the situation that has emerged after state high courts permitted sugar mills to download additional sugar in the market over and above their monthly quotas.
"Legal remedies are being looked into and a decision will be taken shortly. An option is to approach the Supreme Court or contest orders in the high courts itself," official sources told reporters.
They said filing a petition in the Supreme Court is being considered but high courts have only given interim orders, not final judgements. So an option is to contest them there first.
There are also apprehensions that the Supreme Court may declare the entire sugar release mechanism ultra vires of the Essential Commodities Act (ECA) under which it is set up.
The ECA aims at protecting the interest of the consumers while the release mechanism in the current situation of surplus sugar is more in favour of millers.

Millers, however, do not agree with this premise and argue that even the statutory minimum price of sugarcane which is in farmers' interest, is fixed under the ECA.
Surplus is not a permanent phenomenon, release mechanism also ensures sufficient supply to consumers and prevents artificial scarcity, millers can create to push up prices.
Under release mechanism, centre fixes aggregate quota of sugar to be sold every month and ex-factory quota of each mill. Under phased decontrol, government plans to do away with release control in the long term.
Prempting decontrol, apprehensive mills fearing fall in prices are approaching courts to sell additional sugar in the market and have depressed the market. Bureau Report