New Delhi, Sept. 16 -- The Union government has extended the deadline for sugar mills and refiners to surrender unused raw sugar import quotas till September 30, giving them more time to decide whether to go ahead with imports at a time when domestic sugar prices have fallen and global prices have risen. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), in a public notice issued on Monday, said holders of the quota can surrender any unused quantity allocated to them by September 30. They will have to pay an amount equal to 0.5% of the value of the surrendered sugar at the time of import. This replaces the rolling 15-day window that had earlier been given to traders to surrender any quantity they did not want to use. The decision comes less than a month after the government allowed duty-free imports of 1 million tonnes of raw sugar under a special quota to increase supplies and keep prices under control ahead of the festive season. Since then, domestic prices have fallen, while global prices have risen. This means imported sugar is now more expensive than sugar available in India. "With significant correction in domestic sugar prices and with an increase in global sugar prices, there is no reason to import now," a sugar analyst, who did not want to be named, said. The analyst said mills that received a large part of the initial allocation are likely to surrender their unused quota rather than import sugar at current international prices. The government, as per the notification, had already allocated 797,450 tonnes of the 1 million tonne quota after receiving applications from mills and refiners. Another 202,550 tonnes remained available and DGFT had invited fresh applications for this quantity earlier this month....