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U.P Minister writes to CM Yogi alleging corruption in Mandi Parishad
Singh has written a letter to chief minister Yogi Adityanath, pointing out that, among other things, weigh bridges and the CCTV cameras in the state mandis have been rendered non-functional with officials’ complicity to facilitate tax evasion.
Uttar Pradesh minister (independent charge) Dinesh Pratap Singh has blown the whistle on corruption and other irregularities in his own department—the State Agricultural Produce Board (Mandi Parishad), putting many senior officials on edge.
Singh has written a letter to chief minister Yogi Adityanath, pointing out that, among other things, weigh bridges and the CCTV cameras in the state mandis have been rendered non-functional with officials’ complicity to facilitate tax evasion.
The Mandi Parishad, one of the richest government bodies, was set up in 1973 with a view to regulating various activities of mandi committees and implementing welfare schemes for farmers. Singh is minister of state (independent charge) for horticulture, agriculture marketing, agriculture trade and agriculture export and Mandi Parishad comes under his ministry only.
“I have written the letter to the chief minister as a regular exercise of giving feedback about the functioning of mandi committees,” the minister said over phone when contacted for comment.
The chief minister, who is the chairman of the Mandi Parishad board, has authorized Dinesh Pratap Singh to chair the monthly board meeting as a minister.
Receiving complaints about financial irregularities and corruption in mandis from various quarters, the minister convened the board’s meeting on August 16. The minister also connected contactors to the virtual meet and ordered video recording of the proceedings assuring everyone in the meeting that the recording would remain strictly confidential between him and the CM.
“I had to invite contractors to the meetings because when I inquired them about delay in completion of work and poor quality of work, they blamed officials and when I inquired officials, they blamed contractors. So, I thought it would be better to make them face each other to know the truth,” Singh said.
Some 20 days after the meeting, the minister wrote a letter the CM on September 5, drawing his attention to the financial and administrative irregularities in government mandis.
The minister in his letter said that the weigh bridges installed in mandis to weigh and record the commodities that were brought in trucks and tractors for selling often remained non-functional. Also, an alternative path was created near weigh-bridges with the complicity of senior officials because of which most of the vehicles bypass the weigh bridges to get inside mandis.
The minister also pointed out in the letter that the CCTV cameras installed in the mandis to record arrival and departure of consignments were rendered defective or diverted deliberately to evade mandi fee. “The mandis’ income will automatically go up if tax evasions such types are plugged in,” he said.
Singh wrote to the CM that despite the ban, mandi committees accepted payment from traders in cheque which later get bounced but no follow- up action was taken by officials because of which a huge amount of arrears remained unrealized.
“I also found that many construction works in mandis remained incomplete even after 1 to 5 years of their start. In many cases, the agreement for the time period for the completion of the construction works has lapsed and no action has been taken against the contractors concerned”, the minister revealed in the letter.
The Mandi Karamchari Kalyan Sangh Samiti (Bharat), in the meantime, has written a letter to many authorities including the Prime Minister and the CM, pointing out that all the top posts in the Mandi Parishad were currently being held by officials who did not fulfill the seniority criteria as per the government notification. “I will look into this issue and do what is necessary if the matter is brought to my notice,” the minister said when asked.
