Two more commission agents in the dock

Tribune news service

Chandigarh, September 7 

Tightening its noose around the commission agents who have been involved in illegal practice to avoid the market committee fees, the flying squad team of the Marketing and Agriculture Board have caught two more commission agents adopting an illegal means in a surprise check carried out at the Fruit and Vegetable Market, Sector 26, today. 

Sources said the teams led by the Joint Director of the Marketing Board Virendra Chaudhary inspected the auction site of the apple today and found owners of the two firms carrying out the auction without mentioning it in the auction records. 

Sources said the records of both firms dealing in the auction of apple were seized. Besides imposing the penalty, the department will also start proceeding against the firms soon under the law. 

The team has also carried out a check yesterday and found owners of the two firms carrying out the auction secretly. Sources said instead of holding the open auction, the arhityas (commission agents) were holding the auction secretly to avoid the tax of the market committee. 

The Secretary (Marketing Board), Ajit Balaji Joshi, has formed the flying squads to check the illegal practice. Chandigarh Fruit and Vegetable Market is the biggest market of apple and most of these come from Himachal Pardesh. The fees collected from the auction of the apple are major part of the fees of the Market Committee. Chaudhary said they would continue the checking in the coming days to prevent tax evasion.