Agriculture minister poses as a farmer, raids fertiliser shop

State agriculture minister Dadaji Bhuse on Sunday raided a fertiliser shop posing as a farmer. As the shopkeeper refused to give him fertiliser despite having stock,

State agriculture minister Dadaji Bhuse on Sunday raided a fertiliser shop posing as a farmer. As the shopkeeper refused to give him fertiliser despite having stock, Bhuse ordered action against him. He also sent the local quality control officer on compulsory leave with immediate effect.

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Following complaints from farmers that they were not getting fertiliser despite shopkeepers having stock, Bhuse went to Navbharat Fertilizer, a shop in Aurangabad, to verify the plaints. When the minister, posing as a farmer, asked for ten bags of urea the shopkeeper denied having stock despite the notice at the shop which mentioned urea was available there. Bhuse then asked for the stock register but the shopkeeper said he left it at home.

The minister then called the district superintendent agriculture officer and ordered a panchnama, following which the officer found 1,387 bags of urea from the shop. Bhuse also said that quality control officers need to work efficiently so that farmers don’t face such difficulties.