Mancherial becomes hub of spurious cotton seed smuggling

Mancherial district appears to be the epicentre of the menace with a higher number of cases than those booked in Asifabad, Adilabad and Nirmal districts

Mancherial: Smuggling of banned spurious cotton seeds is going on unabated even as police try to curb the menace through different measures including invoking the Preventive Detention Act against habitual offenders in the district.

Mancherial district appears to be the epicentre of the menace with a higher number of cases than those booked in Asifabad, Adilabad and Nirmal districts. The district saw 12 cases when compared to six cases reported in Adilabad district. Both Kumram Bheem Asifabad and Nirmal districts witnessed nominal cases of smuggling.

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Even as data shows that smuggling of spurious cotton seeds was less till 2023 due to stringent action taken against the offenders, the menace has gone up in Mancherial district in 2024. For instance, the district saw 12 cases from January to December of 2024 as against 4 in 2023 and 5 cases in 2022, reflecting a rise by 200 percent. Two cases were registered this year so far. Some traders of the district are importing the seeds from seed manufacturers in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka. They then pack the seeds in sachets of 1 kg or 500 grams each. They recruit agents to dispose of the seeds to gullible farmers. They supply the sachets to agents and sellers by hoodwinking the police, officials said.

The smugglers buy the seeds for Rs.600 per quintal and sell the same for prices between Rs.2,000 and Rs.5,000 per quintal. They are allegedly offering bribes to police officials, public representatives and officials.

Seeds worth Rs.50 crore traded per annum

Cotton is raised in around 10 lakh acres in the district in an agriculture season. An acre of land requires a kilogram of seeds. This means 10,000 quintals are sold a year. The value of seeds purchased by farmers is assessed to be Rs.50 crore. A major portion of the seeds are found to be spurious, showing the gravity of the menace.

Mancherial DCP A Bhaskar said special teams comprising officials of the agriculture department and police were formed to crack down on the smugglers. Cases were being booked and PD Act cases were being invoked against habitual offenders, he said.

Mancherial

Year: 2024

Cases: 12

Persons involved: 23

Seeds seized: 1,611 kgs

Value of seeds: Rs 46.04 L

Year: 2023

Cases: 4

Persons involved: 13

Seeds seized: 1,333 kgs

Value of seeds: Rs 26.81 L

Year: 2022

Cases: 5

Persons involved: 11

Seeds seized: 1,193 kgs

Value of seeds: Rs 23.25 L

Year: 2021

Cases: 65

Persons involved: 157

Seeds seized: 5,082 kgs

Value of seeds: Rs 96.51 L

PD Act were invoked against 18 habitual offenders in 2020 and 2021

Adilabad

Six cases registered against 12 persons for smuggling seeds in Adilabad district in 2024. Seeds worth Rs 10.39 lakh seized

Cases in 2025

Five arrested for smuggling spurious cotton seeds at Mallidi village in Bheemini on March 3 – Police seized 2.74 quintals worth Rs 6.85 lakh

Two nabbed for smuggling cotton seeds at Surzapur village in Kannepalli on March 9 – Police seized 1.40 quintals of seeds worth Rs 3.50 lakh

Major cases in 2024

Two held for smuggling spurious cotton seeds at Dabba village in Chintalamanepalli on May 26. – 3.25 quintals of seeds worth Rs 8.12 lakh recovered

Three booked for manufacturing, packaging banned spurious cotton seeds in Adilabad on May 24 – 400 kilograms of seeds worth Rs.19.34 lakh seized

Two arrested for smuggling spurious cotton seeds at Kotthapalli village in Thandur mandal on May 24 – 30 kg of seeds seized

One arrested by Task Force for smuggling spurious cotton seeds at Gudem village on May 22. – 70 quintals of seeds worth Rs 1.50 lakh seized