Haryana: Shortfall of paddy at three mills shows disparities in purchase

By Praveen Arora

A shortfall of nearly 21,700 quintals of paddy, allotted for the custom-milled rice (CMR), at three rice mills recently, indicates huge discrepancies in the allocation and procurement process for 2023-24. FIRs have already been filed against the owners and partners of the mills, prompting the authorities to initiate a comprehensive investigation for pinpointing the root causes of these discrepancies and hold those responsible accountable. “The investigation aims at determining whether the allotted stock was received, and if so, its whereabouts,” said a police official.

As per sources, several other mills are currently under the lens of the CM flying squad, which will conduct raids in the coming days there.

“After validating the information received, we conduct raids to cross-verify the stock of paddy within the mills against their allocation records. The process will continue in the coming days. We are actively probing any potential collusion between rice millers and officials, which results in losses to the government exchequer,” said Ajeet Singh, DSP, CM flying squad, Karnal Range.

It was not the first instance of discrepancies being unearthed in the region. Similar disparities were previously found at various mills, indicating widespread proxy procurement and the supply of PDS rice from other states, resulting in significant losses to the government.

In October 2023, huge discrepancies were detected at five rice mills within the Cheeka area of Kaithal district. A team found nearly 12,000 quintals of paddy missing from the Cheeka grain market, alongside a shortage of 21,600 quintals of paddy in two rice mills. Additionally, 800 quintals of excess paddy were identified in another mill.

In January 2023, during a physical verification in Kaithal district, 17 teams found nearly 2,630 quintals of paddy missing from the stocks of 35 rice mills. In October 2022, while verifying gate passes, the Karnal administration found 49 passes generated within a 44 minutes at the Gharaunda grain market during the paddy season, were issued to only two firms, indicating irregularities.

In the same month, amid the reports of issuance of ‘fake gate passes’ for proxy procurement at various grain markets, the CM flying squad had conducted a raid at the Jundla grain market, revealing a shortage of around 62,000 quintals of paddy across three mills. Further investigation uncovered the use of scooters, cars, and tractors for the delivery of paddy for the CMR at the Jundla grain market, said an official.

In October 2021, the district administration had filed FIRs against four employees of the Kunjpura market committee, along with 28 arthiyas of the Gheer grain market, in connection with an alleged nexus involving the procurement of paddy from other sources and the illegal issuance of gate passes.

This article has been republished from The Tribune.