Administration Strict on Illegal Transport, Storage & Milling, Major Actions in Many Districts
Raipur January 20, 2026/In Chhattisgarh, with the aim of making the paddy procurement system at support price completely transparent, impartial, and farmer-centric, the Chhattisgarh government is conducting a comprehensive and intensive campaign across the state against irregularities in illegal paddy transport, storage, sale, and milling. In accordance with the clear directives of the government, joint teams of Revenue, Food, Mandi, and Police departments are continuously monitoring inter-state borders, paddy procurement centers, rice mills, and suspicious locations, taking strict action to ensure that the benefits of paddy procurement reach only the genuine farmers.
Food Secretary Smt. Reena Kangale said that the state government is committed to making the paddy procurement system completely transparent, impartial, and farmer-friendly. She clarified that any kind of irregularity, illegal transport, storage, sale, or milling in the process of purchasing paddy at support price will not be tolerated at all. She stated that the government’s clear instruction is that the benefit of paddy procurement should only go to the actual farmers. Strict action is being taken at the initial stage against middlemen, fake tokens, adulteration, inter-state illegal transport, and those involved in irregularities in custom milling. She informed that joint teams of Revenue, Food, Mandi, and Police departments are conducting continuous monitoring and physical verification across the state. She also said that wherever violations of rules are found, the strictest action will be ensured against the concerned person, institution, or mill operator under the Chhattisgarh Rice Procurement Order 2016, the Essential Commodities Act 1955, and other relevant legal provisions. The Food Secretary reiterated that protecting the interests of farmers and maintaining the integrity of the paddy procurement system is the government’s top priority.
In this regard, in Mahasamund district, under the direction of Collector Vinay Kumar Lengeh, a major action was taken against illegal paddy transport, and a joint team seized 694 bags of paddy from a truck in the Rehtikhol area of Saraipali development block last night. The total weight of the seized paddy was found to be approximately 319 quintals. During the investigation, it was found that paddy was being transported from Odisha to Chhattisgarh in the said truck without any valid documents. As the necessary documents related to the transport were not presented, the truck laden with paddy was seized on the spot and handed over to Singhora police station for further legal action. The district administration has clarified that continuous monitoring is being kept on inter-state borders to prevent illegal paddy transport, and thorough checks of suspicious vehicles are being conducted to maintain the integrity of the paddy procurement system.
As part of ensuring transparency in the paddy procurement system, the committee manager and operator of Primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit Society Limited, Mohadi, in Dhamtari district have been dismissed from service after serious irregularities were found. During inspection, cases of adulterated paddy, misuse of tokens, and illegal sales came to light. The administration clarified that strict action is being taken against those involved in irregularities in the paddy procurement system at the initial stage, so that the benefit of procurement remains limited to genuine farmers and effective control is exercised over middlemen.
Similarly, on January 13, 2026, in Baloda Bazar-Bhatapara district, a joint team of Revenue, Food, and Mandi departments seized a pickup vehicle along with 75 sacks of paddy being illegally transported in village Bilari (Sonakhan) and handed it over to Saliha-Bilaigarh police station.
In Surguja district, under the direction of the Collector, rice mills were subjected to intensive physical verification. During the inspection, a significant shortage of paddy was found in Rajesh Rice Mill Khodari and Siddhivinayak Rice Mill Darima. Legal action is being taken against the concerned mills under the Custom Milling Order 2016 and the Essential Commodities Act 1955.
In Mahasamund district, during actions taken at various locations, the joint team seized a total of 217 sacks of paddy and one pickup vehicle. Cases are being registered under the Mandi Act for cases of illegal transport and storage. In Mahasamund district, in the Kharif Marketing Year 2025-26, a total of 2986 sacks of illegal paddy have been seized in the last two days. The Collector conducted surprise inspections of inter-state check posts Temri, Narra, and Khatti, as well as paddy procurement centers, and gave strict instructions. In various cases in Pithora, Basna, and Saraipali areas, a large quantity of illegal and suspicious paddy has been seized and instructions have been given to the concerned departments to take action. In many cases, the paddy has been handed over to the police station.
In Bilaspur district, a major action was taken against Amarnath Agro Product Rice Mill due to serious irregularities in paddy lifting, the mill was sealed, and an FIR was registered against the operator. More than 54,000 quintals of paddy, estimated to be worth approximately 16 crore rupees, were seized from the spot. Physical verification revealed a shortage of thousands of quintals of paddy compared to the paddy issued for custom milling. Immediate action was taken after the irregularity was confirmed following two days of intensive investigation. According to the Food Department, paddy worth more than 56 crore rupees has been seized in Bilaspur district so far. This action has been taken under the violation of the Chhattisgarh Rice Procurement Order 2016. The district administration has unequivocally stated that any irregularities found in paddy procurement, transport, storage, and milling will be met with the strictest legal action against the concerned individuals, institutions, and mill operators.