Samples of 10,800 kg fertiliser seized from Faridkot fail test

The investigation into substandard fertiliser and pesticide revealed that the racket involving a Himachal Pradesh-based firm was storing expired and fake stock to exploit the anticipated shortage in view of the ongoing West Asia conflict.

Around 10,800 kg of substandard stock had been recovered from a packaging unit in Faridkot, following which a case was registered. Agriculture Department’s jointdirector plant protection Narinder Singh Benipal confirmed that the 14 samples collected during the raid on Thursday have failed tests. The Faridkot unit was found to be operating without any license and was storing expired pesticides and fertilisers.

India imports large quantities of key fertilisers such as urea, DAP, MOP and NPK every year. Sources in the department said the conflict in West Asia has already caused a lot of concern and anxiety among farmers ahead of the Kharif season wherein paddy is sown on 35 lakh hectares. “The accused was trying to cash in on the crisis by selling expired pesticides and fertilisers,” an agriculture department official added.

Following the crackdown, Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian urged farmers across the state to report any suspicious fertiliser or pesticide outlets to the department. He described the case as criminal negligence and deliberate cheating, adding that the government would investigate the entire supply chain, including the Himachal Pradesh-based firm linked to the operation.

It was learnt that the retail fertiliser license of the accused, Rajinder Sethi, had expired, yet he continued commercial activity in violation of the Fertiliser Control Order, 1985. Two batches of expired fertilizer and eight expired pesticides were found.

However, samples of the expired stock were not drawn as the products were visibly degraded and in clear violation of shelf-life norms.

The team also discovered that Sethi was operating an illegal packaging unit from his residence without any statutory approval or licence. Investigations have revealed that he was previously booked in a similar case following which his license was cancelled. The raid further uncovered unmarked and open bags containing suspected spurious fertiliser, along with sewing and sealing equipment used for illegal repackaging.