Interstate urea black-marketing racket busted, 8 held

Agra: Police on Tuesday busted an interstate racket involved in the illegal diversion and black marketing of subsidised urea meant for farmers, arresting eight people and seizing more than 20 tonnes of fertiliser worth around Rs 60 lakh in Muzaffarnagar.SSP Sanjay Kumar Verma said the action was part of an ongoing drive against organised crime and black-marketing activities affecting farmers. During the operation, police seized 455 sacks containing 20,430 kg of subsidised urea, two pickup vehicles, a canter truck, a car, and forged bills allegedly used in the illegal trade.Investigators said the accused purchased urea supplied to farmers at subsidised rates and transported it to Yamunanagar in Haryana, where it was allegedly sold to factories at higher prices for profit.Police suspect the racket had been operating for several months and may have illegally diverted nearly 15.12 lakh kg of subsidised urea over the past six months.SSP Verma said police had received inputs about the illegal trade in govt-supplied urea over the past two weeks. “A special investigation was launched with the help of surveillance teams and agriculture department officials. During checking, police intercepted a canter truck, two pickup vehicles and a car, and arrested the accused,” he said.Officials said the fertiliser, intended for agricultural use, was being diverted for industrial purposes. While subsidised urea is available to farmers at around Rs 265 per bag, it can fetch Rs 465 or more in the open market, enabling the accused to earn substantial profits.