February 23rd 2025.
In the district of Jajpur, a shocking incident of fraud has been uncovered. It involves fake vendor receipts in the procurement of paddy, with a total amount of over Rs4 crore. This scam has affected 11 Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies in the district. The State Enforcement Squad brought this fraudulent activity to light, and a detailed report was published in a renowned vernacular newspaper on June 16, 2022.
As soon as the squad's findings were made known, the Registrar of Cooperative Societies took action. On May 16, 2022, the Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies in Jajpur was directed to submit a report on the steps taken within 15 days. However, despite the directive, no action was taken. This prompted another order on November 18, 2022, to ensure compliance. However, even after two years and eight months, no concrete steps were taken, and it seemed as though the case was being suppressed. It wasn't until July 24, 2024, when the Sukinda MLA and State Cooperation Minister, Pradeep Bal Samanta, intervened, that the Registrar of Cooperative Societies was directed to immediately investigate and take appropriate action.
But even after seven months of inaction, the senior Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Amulya Kumar Sethy, stated that they were unable to file an Action Taken Report (ATR) due to ongoing paddy procurement activities. The delay in communication and the lack of action have raised suspicions about the involvement of high-ranking officials in this scam. According to the investigation report, the State Enforcement Squad visited Jajpur district on March 3, 2022, and conducted a thorough inquiry into the paddy procurement activities.
The district's supply department had involved 151 PACSs and SHGs as handling agents for the 2021-22 paddy procurement process. By March 2, 2022, a total of 13,92,091.25 quintals of paddy had been collected through 10 millers. During the verification process, officials conducted a detailed inquiry into the paddy collection, dispatch, and stock records. It was found that in Gramanandipur PACS of Dasarathpur block, 28,941.70 quintals of paddy had been procured, but only 25,438.45 quintals had been dispatched to the mills. Similar discrepancies were found in other locations, such as 3,753.04 quintals in Chasakhanda PACS, 1,790.30 quintals in Bairi PACS, 816.16 quintals in Samiya PACS of Barchana block, and 1,183.73 quintals in Amathapur PACS of Bari block.
Further investigations revealed additional discrepancies of 1801.05 quintals at Narahari PACS under Binjharpur block, 383.58 quintals in Abhayapur PACS under Dharmasala block, 4,581.28 quintals in Dudhujuri PACS under Sukinda block, 1, 279.50 quintals in Gobardhanpur PACS under Danagadi block, 1,008.24 quintals in Mahavir Shakti SHG, and 1,035.21 quintals in Markandapur PACS under Jajpur block. In total, 20,697.34 quintals of paddy were fraudulently procured using fake vendor receipts, amounting to over Rs4 crores at the Minimum Support Price of Rs1,960 per quintal.
Based on the investigation, Basanta Kumar Panda, an investigating officer and a civil supplies officer from the state headquarters of the Odisha Civil Supply Corporation, submitted a report recommending the district collector to take legal action against the responsible officials. He also suggested barring the nine involved millers and officials from mandi operations. However, despite these recommendations, no action was taken, and the matter was eventually suppressed. This incident has raised concerns about accountability and corruption in the cooperative sector.
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