Telangana: Over 500q of PDS rice smuggled into AP using 2-wheelers

Hyderabad: In order to escape from the police’s grasp, smugglers in the former Khammam district are using two-wheelers for smuggling PDS rice.

According to The New Indian Express (TNIE), up to 500 quintals of PDS rice are being smuggled into Andhra Pradesh from the Satupalli Assembly district. The majority of the stolen grains are sold to farms that raise poultry. It was discovered that the smugglers purchase the rice for Rupees four per kg and sold it in neighbouring for Rs eight per kg.

Vendors of the fair price shops (FPS), pay Rs 4 per kg to ration card holders who are unable to accept the rice and sell the same to smugglers at Rs 8 per kg.

Due to the numerous poultry farms in the border areas and the production of alcohol, there is a great need for inexpensive rice in Andra Pradesh.

Up to 50 persons from various villages in Telangana’s border regions have been recruited for the activities. The transporters smuggle rice every morning between 2:30 and 4:30 am, on their motorcycles.

As per a resident of Andhra Pradesh village of Bharanipadu, SK Pasha, residents are awoken by the sound of passing motorcycles every morning, where smugglers make three to four trips in a two-hour period while transporting 1.5 quintals of rice, each time.

He claimed that the majority of the rice is imported into AP, from the Telangana villages of Vemsoor, Marlapadu, and Kandukur, through Bharanipadu, on its way to the hamlet of Endapalli, where it is distributed.

“We are investigating into the smuggling and taking whatever action we can to stop it,” K Satyanarayana, deputy tahsildar of the Civil Supplies Department, Vemsoor, was quoted by TNIE.