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Checkposts to curb smuggling of agro products

Lucknow Nov 30. While admitting that inter-State smuggling of agricultural products resulted in a huge revenue loss, the Uttar Pradesh government today said it would create additional check posts to curb the practice.

Addressing newspersons here, the State Agriculture Minister Shivpal Singh Yadav said the government was aware of the ongoing smuggling of agro products to neighbouring states of Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana in the West and Bihar in the East.

``To begin with, we are planning a check post at Varanasi-Bihar border in Naubatpur with computerised systems. Later, similar posts would be created in western UP,'' he informed.

According to the government, during its ongoing campaign to check inter-State smuggling, the authorities this month seized 842 vehicles and recovered Rs 23-lakh `mandi' and related taxes from the offenders.

The government had found lesser recovery of mandi tax in Kanpur division in October, while a steep fall in revenues was also noticed in Meerut division in the same period. Following steep fall in incomes of six mandis at Meerut, Farukkabad, Muradabad, Etah, Paliyankalan and Jalaun, the government had recently suspended as many secretaries running the affairs, the minister said.

The minister also admitted there had been instances of exploitation of farmers in the state by employees of various mandis and middlemen. ``Now, we have decided to remove such things within one year,'' he added.

He said the recent spate of suspensions and show cause notices being issued to various agriculture department officials was part of the government's efforts to weed out black sheep. -- UNI

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