Haryana: Paddy allotment to millers beyond capacity under scanner in Karnal
By Parveen Arora
addy procurement during the 2025-26 season in Karnal district has come under scrutiny after investigators found that several rice millers were allotted paddy far in excess of their approved milling capacity, allegedly in violation of the custom-milling rice (CMR) policy. The irregularities surfaced during an ongoing probe into the ‘ghost paddy procurement’ scam, prompting police to widen the investigation.
Under the policy, millers must register their units with the District Food Supplies Controller (DFSC) by paying a Rs 3,000 fee, followed by inspection of plant capacity, infrastructure and statutory approvals. The final inspection report is placed before the District Milling Committee (DMC) and paddy is allotted strictly as per approved capacity. Sources in the SIT probing six FIRs registered in Karnal said the investigation has already revealed fake gate passes generated from IP addresses outside the city, paddy shown as procured only on paper, stock shortages in mills and recovery of undocumented and substandard rice.
Preliminary findings indicate that in multiple cases, millers received paddy beyond their sanctioned capacity without DMC approval. Besides mismatches in GPS locations and fake gate passes, police are now examining uneven allotment of paddy to millers.
“In some cases uneven distribution of paddy has come to the fore. Some millers have been allotted excess paddy beyond the capacity. We are investigating this angle and have sought records from the procurement agencies for a detailed probe,” said a police official.
He said officials of procurement agencies, in collusion with certain millers, may have bypassed mandatory checks, resulting in illegal allotments. A senior procurement agency official said chargesheets were being prepared against officials involved in excess allotment cases
Police believe allotment beyond capacity facilitated diversion of stock and creation of “ghost” entries. So far, six persons, including government employees, millers and arhtiyas, have been arrested.
This article has been republished from The Tribune.