Jalukbari police seized 620 bags of suspected PDS rice; 2 held

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Recently there has been a rise in cases regarding the illegal transportation of public distribution system (PDS) rice. The scheme was introduced to provide rice to the people who are below the poverty line. However, is the distribution fair enough?

An incident was registered by the Jalukbari police on May 25 where the police seized a truck (NL01AD3926) for illegally transporting 620 bags of suspected PDS rice to Silchar. The rice was originally allotted for Barpeta. In this regard the police have registered a case – 688/2020 u/s 379/411 IPC and Section 7 of Essential Commodities Act. Both the driver and the handymen have also been arrested. "We suspect that the documents provided by the driver are forged ones. We are currently investigating to nab the culprit who is working behind the curtains to operate the racket," said a police source. According to the source, the police suspect that the truck was not travelling to Silchar but Meghalaya. The loopholes in the distribution system were first highlighted in the city in January 2019 when a PDS rice-laden truck met with an accident in Boragaon. The truck was illegally carrying 256 bags of rice from Barpeta. 

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