2 fertiliser dealers lose licence for urea fraud in Yamunanagar

Tribune News Service
Yamunanagar, January 29

The Deputy Director, Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Department, has suspended authorisation letters of two fertiliser dealers in Yamunanagar district following a number of flaws in their record. The authorisation letters of Hindustan Fertilisers, Joriyon naka, and Sidhi Vinayak Khad Store, near Raipur village, were suspended.

A team of the department led by Dr Manjit Singh Nain, Joint Director (quality control), checked 14 business establishments — eight plywood factories and six fertiliser dealers — in the district on January 16 and 17.

Sources said the owner of Sidhi Vinayak Khad Store did not display the name of his firm on the signboard. He failed to show point of sale machine, bill bookand stock register while the price list, stock position and authorisation letter were not displayed in the office.

The sources said the office of Hindustan Fertilisers was locked, with the owner standing outside. The team asked him a number of times to open the office, but he did not do so.

“We have suspended their authorisation letters as a number of flaws were found in their record. We keep a vigil and act against fertiliser dealers indulging in illegal sale of urea,” said Surinder Singh Yadav, Deputy Director.

The sources said several fertiliser dealers in Yamunanagar district indulged in illegal sale of subsidised agriculture-grade urea to the plywood industry, which could use only technical-grade urea to prepare glue, used in manufacturing ply and board.

The sources said the price of agriculture-grade urea was Rs 267.50 per 45-kg bag and technical-grade urea was priced at between Rs 1,300 and Rs 1,390 per 50-kg bag. Yamunanagar district had about 400 ply and board factories.