In a serious incident caused by heavy overnight rain, the Saraswati Sugar Mill in Yamunanagar, Haryana, was flooded, damaging sugar worth Rs 50 to 60 crore. The Saraswati mill is known as Asia’s largest sugar compound, and officials say around 40% of the stored sugar has been destroyed due to water entering the warehouse.

The warehouse stored around 220,000 quintals of sugar, valued at nearly Rs 97 crore. Officials said the flooding happened due to rainwater and overflow from a nearby drain that entered the warehouse.

Rajiv Mishra, the General Manager of the Saraswati Sugar Mill, said, "It rained extremely heavily last night. Our security staff alerted us around midnight about water entering the premises. Due to the encroachment, the drain's level rose. Sugar, being highly hygroscopic in nature, was highly affected. We have lost around Rs 50 to 60 crore worth of sugar. But we can estimate the exact loss once we scan the entire warehouse."

Mr Mishra also said that the municipal corporation drain runs right behind the warehouse, and it was blocked due to illegal construction. This blockage caused the floodwater to enter the sugar mill for the first time ever.

"We have never dealt with something like this before," he added.

At present, officials are trying to clear the water using cranes and other equipment.

Though the sugar mill has suffered a huge financial loss, Mr Mishra said it may not affect the local sugar markets.

However, experts warn that if such negligence by officials continues, it could cause not only financial damage but may also lead to food shortages in the future if similar incidents happen again.

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