After fire incidents, groundnut procurement in Gujarat has once again come under the scanner following an alleged scandal at a procurement centre in Rajkot district.
The alleged scandal of mixing pebbles and dust in the groundnut sacks at warehouses has put traders in a tizzy. The scam-hit procurement has put a financial burden on the traders. “We normally have to pay an advance amount before lifting the stock from the warehouses. Most traders borrow money at high interest to pay advances. At the sale point, we have delivery and quality commitments, failing which we are penalised. When such scams arise, traders face a double blow,” said Manubhai Patelia, Vice-President, Saurashtra Oil Mills’ Association (SOMA).
Normally, traders lift stocks to meet the requirement of 10-15 days. For a typical unit with a daily processing capacity of 20 tonnes, about 200 tonnes from such warehouses, worth ₹70 lakh, will be lifted.
“It is wrong to say all warehouses faced such a scam as there are better-quality nuts found in warehouses in North Gujarat. But, in Saurashtra, there are issues at some places,” said Patelia.
On July 31, 1,050 tonnes of groundnut-in-shell at a warehouse in Pedhla village of Jetpur taluka of Rajkot district, worth about ₹4 crore, were found to contain sand and pebbles.
The State government arrested 22 people connected with this scam. This included senior officials of Gujarat State Co-Operative Cotton Federation Limited (Gujcot) and others. According to sources, more such scam-hit warehouses are likely to emerge in the districts of Junagadh and Rajkot.
Nafed had procured over eight lakh tonnes of groundnut worth over ₹3,600 crore from Gujarat — a record — since last October following the State harvesting a bumper crop of 32 lakh tonnes.