Now Reading: 89 Telangana rice mills diverted Rs 927 crore paddy
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89 Telangana rice mills diverted Rs 927 crore paddy
Telangana's Vigilance and Enforcement Department has found that 89 rice mills diverted 3.72 lakh metric tonnes of paddy worth Rs 927.16 crore under the Custom Milling Rice (CMR) process during the 2022-2025…
Telangana's Vigilance and Enforcement Department has found that 89 rice mills diverted 3.72 lakh metric tonnes of paddy worth Rs 927.16 crore under the Custom Milling Rice (CMR) process during the 2022-2025 Kharif seasons. Officials recovered over Rs 700 crore and registered 28 criminal cases against 50 millers, of whom 26 have been arrested.
The diversion was uncovered during physical stock verification that began in July and continues across the state. In Suryapet district alone, 14 millers failed to return 1.29 lakh metric tonnes worth Rs 318 crore. In Peddapalli, 38 millers defaulted on paddy valued at Rs 238 crore, while seven millers in Jagtial diverted grains worth Rs 135 crore.
Officials said they obtained undertakings from millers to pay 50% of the cost of defaulted grains within a week. The Preventive Detention Act was invoked against a miller in Mancherial district. Among those booked was former Khanapur MLA Rekha Naik. Sources said some millers were selling the rice in the black market for profit.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The CMR scheme was designed to let the government procure paddy at minimum support price, hand it to mills for milling, and receive rice for the public distribution system. When millers divert the grain, they break a supply chain that feeds millions of ration-card holders. The Rs 927 crore figure is large but represents only the detected fraud, the actual loss could be higher. The state's recovery rate of over Rs 700 crore is high, suggesting most millers are able to pay once caught. The next step will be how many of the 28 criminal cases result in convictions and whether the government tightens the CMR process to prevent repeat diversions.
Source: telanganatoday.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
