Another big procurement scam story has come out from Chhattisgarh,and honestly,this one is not small thing ah . Paddy meant for system,for farmers,for cooperative setup… and now allegation is that 9,355 sacks of paddy just vanished from records .
Police arrested Gangadhar Jagat,on May 28 . He was in-charge of procurement center in Mahasamund district and is now accused of embezzlement worth ₹1.16 crores . That amount itself tells why this case has created noise in cooperative societies and political circles.
Case reportedly started after complaint by Usat Kumar Pradhan,Branch Manager of the District Cooperative Central Bank Ltd . in Pirda . After that,officials did physical verification at Bamhani Paddy Procurement Center and found shortage of 3,742 quintals of coarse paddy.
And this is where matter became more serious. This was not about few bags missing here and there . Police are saying paddy was allegedly pilfered over extended period,and that makes whole procurement process look very shaky .
Few things standing out clearly in this case:
- 9,355 sacks of paddy were allegedly embezzled,worth ₹1.16 crores.
- Shortage of 3,742 quintals of coarse paddy was found at Bamhani Paddy Procurement Center .
- Gangadhar Jagat has been sent to judicial custody after arrest.
After complaint,Basna Police Station registered case under Section 316(5) of BNS . Jagat was then questioned strongly,and during interrogation,he reportedly confessed to his crimes . After that,he was produced before court and remanded to judicial custody.
Tbh,anger among local farmers and cooperative members is understandable . If procurement center itself becomes place of suspected fraud,then ordinary farmers will naturally ask who is watching stock,who is checking records,and who is answerable when crores are involved .
Police have now intensified investigation into economic crimes and corruption in procurement sector . Authorities are also looking into whether more people were involved in this scheme,because such large shortage usually raises more questions than answers.
And maybe that is main uncomfortable part here . One arrest has happened,but if 9,355 sacks can disappear like this,then how deep does problem actually go in system…
