Paddy ‘scam’: State stops milling of PB-1509 variety

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Sirsa, December 4

Amid Opposition’s allegations of a scam in paddy procurement, the Food and Supplies Department today directed District Food and Supply Controllers (DFSC) not to mill PB-1509 variety of paddy till further orders.

Jaipal Singh, Deputy Director, Food and Supplies, confirmed directions had been issued to the DFSCs in this regard.

Radhe Sham Jindal, president of the Sirsa Rice Millers Association, however, said millers had not received any such order so far.

Against the backdrop of a ruckus by the Opposition in the Assembly on paddy procurement scam, the Haryana Government had, on Wednesday, allotted 13 districts to administrative secretaries for supervising the physical verification of paddy stocks of state procurement agencies lying in rice mills.

The government had said the verification had to be completed in 20 days.

The Haryana Pradesh Vyapar Mandal, meanwhile, has taken exception to the state government’s order and said it would affect the functioning of mills.

“The paddy stocked in rice mills is verified jointly by millers as well as representatives of procurement agencies from time to time. The millers supply custom-milled rice to agencies every month as per the ratio prescribed for the purpose. The government has a policy for this which is working well for 20 years. Any further physical verification will hamper functioning of the mills,” said Bajrang Dass Garg, the mandal president.

He alleged that on the pretext of physical verification of stock, officials of the marketing board, Excise and Taxation Department, Food and Supplies Department, procurement agencies and district administration would demand bribe from them.

Sources in the rice industry said the state government’s September 29 directions treating Pusa-1509 variety of basmati on a par with Grade-1 variety would have ramifications which the government could find it difficult to handle.

On September 25, the state government had asked millers to keep separate stocks of the two varieties but, in a letter issued four days later, it had said “no separate records were needed” since the Centre had treated Grade-1 and Pusa-1509 varieties equivalent.

“The government allows export of only basmati varieties, while Grade 1 varieties are not exported for the purpose of food security. Since PB-1509, which essentially is a basmati variety, has been treated as Grade 1, its export will not be allowed unless the government specifically gives relaxations,” the sources said.

Sources said nothing would come out of physical verification since the millers had no separate stock of Grade-1 and PB-1509 varieties and it was impossible to separate the two from 500 MT or more paddy stocked in any given mill.