Book officials suspended for procurement fraud: CM

While holding a high-level review meeting on paddy and bajra procurement, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini instructed that in cases where irregularities are found in e-procurement portal entries and H-register auctions at the New Grain Mandi, Kanina, and Grain Mandi, Kosli, and where employees or officers have already been suspended, FIRs should also be registered.

The Chief Minister emphasised that Haryana Government is determined to protect farmers’ earnings and to purchase every grain of their produce. Officials reported that paddy procurement started on October 22, and in most mandis, it is proceeding smoothly.

So far, procurement from 2.66 lakh farmers has resulted in approximately 52.18 lakh metric tonnes of paddy being purchased. Around Rs 10,204.98 crore has been transferred to farmers’ accounts. The procurement of bajra includes 291.1 metric tonnes by state agencies and 3.99 lakh metric tonnes by private traders.

Officials also reported some complaints regarding paddy coming from other states and irregularities in gate pass scanning, to which the government has taken a strict stance. Physical verification is being conducted for rice mills in Ambala, Yamunanagar, Kurukshetra and Kaithal where paddy has been allocated for milling.

The Chief Minister directed that technical staff availability in mandis be ensured so that gate pass scanning and physical verification are not hindered. He clarified that gate passes should only be scanned within the designated mandi area. In mandis where gate pass scanning has been misused, responsible employees and officers must be identified and detailed reports submitted. Along with strict administrative action, FIRs will also be registered in such cases. To prevent illegal entry of paddy from other states, all border districts have been instructed to implement strict police checkpoints.

The Chief Minister instructed district administration officers to regularly visit mandis and interact with farmers. Rice mills allocated paddy should be physically verified periodically. Any negligence or corruption at any level will be met with immediate strict action.

The meeting was also attended by Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi, Chief Principal Secretary to CM Rajesh Khullar and Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Sumita Misra.