‘Ghost’ procurement of paddy in Karnal dist, 8 grain markets under lens

“Ghost” paddy procurement has come to light again following the registration of three FIRs in the district. An official confirmed that preliminary investigation indicated that “fake” procurement was recorded on paper without any actual arrival of stock in the grain markets. Fabricated entries and manipulated documents were used to show fake purchases, resulting  in a significant financial loss to the state.

Officials are now tracing the trail of procurement—from the registration of farmers on the Meri Fasal Mera Byora portal and issuance of gate passes to the final disbursement of payments. The probe aims to determine which commission agents made the fraudulent entries, which government agencies processed the procurement, and which rice mills were assigned the stock.

So far, eight grain markets—Karnal, Gharaunda, Assandh, Taraori, Indri, Nissing, Nigdhu, and Jundla—are under investigation as they have witnessed high arrivals compared to last season. Early findings suggest that a network of insiders conspired to exploit loopholes in the procurement system. Fake gate passes were allegedly issued in bulk to create the appearance of heavy arrivals. In an FIR registered at City police station, multiple passes were issued using different IP addresses from outside the grain market.

Officials are also scrutinising the banking trail to identify where the payments were ultimately diverted, said an official. Cyber experts have joined the probe to trace the money transfers and identify the beneficiaries.

“Discrepancies have been found between the physical stock of paddy in some mills and the allotment to them. Every gate pass and payment entry is being verified,” said an official.

The police have also collected records in connection with two of the FIRs registered earlier. The police believe that several more employees could be involved. SP Ganga Ram Punia said they were investigating all angles.

DC Uttam Singh said the investigation had so far led to the registration of three FIRs, and further action would be taken once the inquiry was complete.

Farmers have expressed outrage over the scam. Manjeet Chaugama, block Indri president of BKU (Charuni), said, “This proxy procurement is the result of an organised nexus. We demand a fair inquiry."

The DC has directed the ADC and SDMs to conduct physical verification of mills to check the stock as well as review the CCTV footage of grain markets to check the arrival of vehicles and the gate passes.

The FIRs have been registered in different police stations and involve two secretaries of market committees, a rice miller, four employees of the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board, and an SI from the Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department. In addition, three employees of the Karnal market have been suspended for their alleged role in the irregularities.