- Divert custom-milled rice (CMR) to black markets costing exchequer over Rs. 10,000 crore in the past five years

- In Mancherial district alone, 25 millers defaulted on ₹205 crore worth of CMR by August 2025, diverting stocks meant for public distribution systems

-Ration cardholders offloading free PDS rice at ₹20-25 per kg to black marketeers, who flip it for double—fueling a recycling scam

metro india news  I hyderabad

In the fertile fields of Telangana, where paddy sways like waves of gold under monsoon skies, a darker harvest unfolds: one of corruption, exploitation, and systemic betrayal. Rice millers, emboldened by a shadowy lobby with tentacles deep in political corridors, are wreaking havoc on farmers. They hoard government-procured paddy, divert custom-milled rice (CMR) to black markets, and pocket billions while farmers rot in debt and despair. This isn't mere malpractice; it's organized plunder, costing the exchequer over Rs. 10,000 crore in the past five years alone, with fresh scandals erupting in 2025. As the Congress government marks its second year, the cycle persists—unchanged, unpunished, and unapologetic.

The saga of betrayal begins at the procurement centers. Farmers, battling erratic rains and labor shortages, deliver wet paddy to societies, 1KP centers, or government depots, only to watch it fester and rot. Drying facilities? A cruel joke—promised on paper but absent in reality, siphoning crores in corrupt contracts. Desperate millers, receiving subpar "non-FAQ" (fair average quality) grain, slap farmers with a punitive "extra one kg" levy per quintal as compensation. Local political leaders and society officials collude, turning procurement into an extortion racket. The result? Farmers lose income, millers offload rejects to liquor distilleries at a pittance, and the government stares at unrecoverable dues ballooning to hundreds of crores. 

This isn't hyperbole; it's the grim arithmetic of agrarian distress. In Mancherial district alone, 25 millers defaulted on Rs. 205 crore worth of CMR by August 2025, diverting stocks meant for public distribution systems (PDS) to shadowy buyers. Across Suryapet, eight millers allegedly misappropriated Rs. 420 crore in paddy last December, their godowns echoing empty during raids. Social media buzzes with fury: one viral thread exposes a Rs. 1,100 crore "paddy-lifting" heist, where politically backed firms "sold" unmoved grain back to millers for fat profits, pocketing taxpayer money without a single truck rolling. Another post decries ration cardholders offloading free PDS rice at Rs. 20-25 per kg to black marketeers, who flip it for double—fueling a recycling scam that mocks the welfare state. 

Enter the revolving door of enforcement: a parade of IPS officers thrust into the MD hot seat at the Telangana State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited (TSCSCL), only to be yanked out before their nets close. Akun Sabharwal and CV Anand, predecessors to the current incumbent Stephen Ravindra, waged valiant but futile wars against the millers. Surprise raids exposed hoarding and diversions, yet transfers swiftly followed—whispers of lobby pressure deafening. The pattern screams sabotage: act too boldly, and you're sidelined. Under the erstwhile BRS regime, millers linked to leaders like Bodhan's Shakeel Aamir allegedly vanished Rs. 70 crore in CMR from family-owned mills in Nizamabad, with FIRs quashed via high court pleas. Now, with Congress in the saddle, the script flips but the plot thickens.

Stephen Ravindra, the no-nonsense IPS officer elevated to TSCSCL MD, burst onto the scene with a bang: sudden, unannounced blitzes on major mills last month, verifying stocks and operations. Echoing his storied tenure as Cyberabad CP—where he cracked down on cyber frauds and data thefts—Ravindra's raids zeroed in on godowns teeming with discrepancies. Shortages were glaring: mills claiming full milling loads but yielding zilch to FCI inspections. Yet, weeks on, silence reigns. No prosecutions, no pressers, no accountability. Social media sleuths speculate: has the high command reined him in? Or is he gearing for a deeper purge?

The elephant in the godown? The "Big Four"—a cartel of mega-millers wielding political clout that transcends regimes. Though names evade public FIRs, insiders finger outfits in Gadwal and Nizamabad, allegedly backed by BRS relics and Congress turncoats. These titans, with capacities dwarfing state quotas, dictate terms: inflating costs, delaying lifts, and funneling PDS rice to exports or open markets. In Gadwal's CMR scam, blacklisted millers waltzed back into allocations via "influence," siphoning stocks worth crores. BJP voices decry the Civil Supplies Department's complicity, a charge echoed in older probes but revived in 2025's paddy allocation uproar, where cross-district godown tricks evaded audits. 

Predecessor D. Ravi Chouhan did streamline procurement to an extent, digitizing lifts and curbing wet paddy delays. But will Ravindra build on it? Farmers, watching from rain-soaked fields, doubt it. Attacks on collectors by desperate growers in November 2024—fueled by land grabs for pharma firms—signal boiling unrest. "Organized loot," one X user fumed, as clerks fiddle weights and tahsildars pocket bribes for mutations. 

A simple fix stares Telangana in the face: empower millers with drying facilities to collect wet paddy directly, slashing transport hassles and hamali costs borne by the fisc. Farmers pocket more, millers mill quality FAQ for FCI, and markets brim with affordable rice. Societies' phantom dryers? Dismantle the graft-riddled facade. Yet, the lobby resists—why share the pie when you can devour it whole?

Time's ticking for Ravindra. The people watch, pitchforks metaphorical but tempers real. If he falters, Telangana's rice bowl cracks further, spilling not grains, but the state's soul. CM Revanth Reddy promised a "new dawn"; deliver it, or watch the mafia's harvest eclipse yours. The farmers' cry echoes: enough. Act, or be complicit.