Large-scale paddy purchase is ‘only on paper’ in Punjab

Ruchika M Khanna

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 10

The total paddy procured by the Punjab Government over the years could be much less than what is being projected and paid for by the Centre with a nexus emerging during the ongoing procurement season among arhtiyas, mandi board officers, inspectors of procurement agencies and rice millers that points towards large-scale procurement being done only on paper.

Top officers in the state Food and Supplies Department say they have established how arhtiyas (commission agents), mandi board officers and inspectors were simply uploading entries on the department’s official portal, showing paddy purchase, when no actual purchase is happening.

Once an entry for paddy purchase by an arhtiya in a mandi is uploaded, payment is released to the commission agent electronically. With those concerned in cahoots, no physical verification of paddy “purchase” is carried out. 

The Central Government ends up paying for substantial quantity of paddy that has actually not been purchased. The paddy purchased by procurement agencies is sent to rice millers, who process it and return it to the agencies. However, when no purchase has been made, paddy is sent to millers only on paper. The miller, in turn, mills paddy sourced from other states at cheaper rates and returns it to the agencies. All four — arhtiya, mandi officer, inspector and miller — make profit.

The nexus was uncovered on November 6 during checking in Tarn Taran after state minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu received complaints of large-scale bogus billing.

Officials say their teams found fake purchase entries for 92,000 bags of paddy by commission agents in connivance with Pungrain officials and another 78,000 bags involving Markfed officials.

“The teams found that no paddy purchase was done by Pungrain in Tarn Taran between October 23 and 31, but entries for 92,000 bags had been made. On questioning, officials and commission agent revealed bags were dispatched in advance to rice millers.”

Another 78,000 bags of paddy were shown to have been purchased, but officials couldn’t show the stock or furnish details of the rice mills where these had been sent, said a senior officer, adding that the embezzlement in two cases was around Rs 1.10 crore.

“This is just one instance. As we increase vigil, we will not only be able to stop embezzlement, but also get more realistic paddy procurement figures each year in consonance with the total sown area,” he added. KAP Sinha, Principal Secretary, Food and Supplies Department, said they would set up district-level monitoring committees, headed by deputy commissioners, to check the malpractice.

“These panels will have representation from the Excise and Taxation Department, Mandi Board, food procurement agencies and rice shelling mills. They will do an end-to-end checking of actual purchase, paddy transported to millers, and rice milled and returned to agencies after matching the figures with farmers’ bank accounts to which money is being transferred. Before the paddy is transported to rice millers, a verification of the stocked paddy and rice in each mill will also be done,” he said.