2,000 fertiliser bags seized in East Champaran raids

Patna: Raids by the agriculture department officials on the retail shops and private houses in the two villages under Bankatwa block of East Champaran district on Friday led to the recovery of around 2,000 bags of urea, SSP and MOP fertilizers kept for sale in the black market at exorbitant rates.The raids were conducted as part of the two-day intensive drive conducted by the agriculture department across the state from Thursday to unearth cases of hoarding, black marketing and smuggling of different types of fertilizers to prevent their scarcity in the Rabi season, the agriculture department said. The flying squads set up at the headquarters were also conducting raids at the trading establishments and suspicious places.In East Champaran district, the raids were conducted in three retail shops and private houses in Regania and Agarwa villages of Bankatwa block.The raid on the godowns of Messers Akash Fertilizers and Ms Jawed Khad Bhandar yielded 81 and 370 bags of urea, respectively, said the agriculture department. Besides, the raids on the house of one Purushottam Yadav led to the recovery of 660 bags of urea, 80 bags from one Arvind’s house, and another chunk of 25 bags of urea from the house of Madan. Further, 600 bags of urea, 100 bags of SSP and 50 sacks of MOP were seized from the godown of Ms Bhawani Khad Bhandar, it added.Agriculture department principal secretary Pankaj Kumar said fertilizers have been seized and legal proceedings were also being initiated against the trading establishments and persons concerned under the Fertilizer Control Act, 1985. Their licences would be cancelled and FIRs, too, would be lodged.He appealed to the farmers to purchase fertilizers and pesticides only from authorised shops, and also asked them to inform the district agriculture office regarding hoarding, black marketing of fertilizers and their sale at increased prices.