Haryana: 2 Taraori rice mills found short of paddy stock, FIRs registered
By Parveen Arora
Two rice mills in Taraori were found short of paddy stock during physical verification, following which the authorities registered FIRs against the owners of the mills and officials of the Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department.
These FIRs have been registered after physical verification and ongoing investigation into an alleged paddy procurement scam in the district.
Confirming the development, Mukesh Kumar, District Food and Supplies Controller (DFSC), Karnal, said that teams led by him conducting physical verification found a major shortage of paddy allocated to these mills.
He said, Balaji Rice Mill, Taraori, was found short of nearly 10,000 quintals of paddy, while Vishavkarma Rice Mill, Taraori, was found a short of around 26,000 quintals.
“We have also found that paddy was allotted to these mills when they were not functional and were not fulfilling the required criteria, so FIRs have also been registered against the concerned inspector and sub-inspector of the department,” Kumar said.
The police have booked the owners of Balaji Rice Mill — Arun, Mohit and Surinder — along with department inspector Davinder and sub-inspector Ramphal under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Kumar further informed that he had also recommended registration of an FIR against the inspector and sub-inspector Ramphal who allotted paddy to Vishavkarma Rice Mill.
FIR has been registered against the owner of Vishavkarma Rice Mill, identified as Mahinder Jangra.
Deputy Commissioner Anand Kumar Sharma said the administration was taking the matter very seriously and said that strict action would be taken against all those found involved in such irregularities. “No one involved in such irregularities will be spared,” he said.
Sources revealed that the case is linked to irregularities detected during the last paddy procurement season in the district.
Earlier, six FIRs had been registered by Karnal Police at different police stations in connection with the alleged scam and with these two FIRs, the number bas reached eight.
More than 40 officials, rice millers and arhtiyas have either been arrested or joined the investigation.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by Karnal Police is now tracing the digital trail of the alleged scam. The investigation includes scrutiny of fake farmer registrations on the Meri Fasal Mera Byora portal, forged gate passes, fabricated arrival records and fraudulent government transactions.
This article has been republished from The Tribune.