Gate passes in Karnal mandis issued without arrival of vehicles: Probe

An investigation led by an IAS officer has unearthed irregularities in the issuance of gate passes in different grain markets. In Nissing grain market, the investigation team found that gate passes were issued without the actual arrival of vehicles in the grain market, raising concerns of foul play.

This has been revealed in the investigation conducted by Assistant Commissioner Under Training (ACUT) Yogesh Saini, who was assigned the inquiry by Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Yash Jaluka.

Report submitted for thorough investigation

We have forwarded our report to the Chief Administrator of the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board for a thorough investigation. The additional inspection of mills is underway to identify any other discrepancies in the system.

Uttam Singh, Karnal Deputy Commissioner

The ADC submitted a detailed report on the findings to Deputy Commissioner (DC) Uttam Singh, who is chairman of the district milling committee, and highlighted the need for an indepth investigation involving technical experts to dismantle what appears to be a systematic nexus. He also suggested the checking of all CCTV cameras installed at the entry and exit gates of grain markets.

The Tribune has highlighted the issue of deletion of gate passes of nearly 98,000 quintals of paddy across nine grain markets. Besides, it has also highlighted the issue of issuance of multiple gate passes even in a few seconds. In just 23 seconds, two gate passes were issued, which as per the authorities, is not feasible.

The experts highlighted that the deletion of huge quantities indicates potential involvement of the employees and officials of the market committees.

After the report, ACUT Yogesh Saini conducted a physical verification of records at Nissing grain market, which showed that a large number of gate passes were subsequently deleted. “The investigation revealed that some gate passes were issued even though the vehicles did not arrive at Nissing grain market,” said ADC Jaluka, adding that additional verification efforts would be extended to other grain markets to determine the full scope of the issue. The investigation has already exposed the shortfall of nearly 4,000 quintals of paddy in a rice mill.

ADC Jaluka urged the Deputy Commissioner to thoroughly review all CCTV footage to validate the facts surrounding the gate pass irregularities.

DC Uttam Singh confirmed that the deletions indicated foul play. “We have forwarded our report to the Chief Administrator of the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board for a thorough investigation,” said DC Singh, adding that the additional inspections of mills were underway to identify any other discrepancies in the system.