When paddy procurement in Sambalpur is yet to start, most of the mills in the district are packed with new paddy of the current season.
And acting on a tipoff, the Revenue and Civil Supply departments conducted joint raids in nearly 10 mills.
“While irregularities were found in five mills, other five were found alright,” informed district Collector Samarth Verma. A few other mills will also face similar action, he added.
Paddy procurement which is another herculean task for the administration in Sambalpur and whole of the Hirakud command area is to start from November 15. But much to the surprise of many, most of the rice mills of the district are now jam-packed with new paddy. It is believed that either the millers have collected the huge quantity of paddy from brokers or from out of the State. And these millers are sure to create artificial problem during procurement.