Telangana: Criminal cases against 7 millers topping list of defaulters on CMR

Civil Supplies Commissioner, D S Chouhan made it clear that there would not be any scope for waiver of the penalty on the CMR dues.

Hyderabad: The Telangana Civil Supplies Corporation has initiated criminal proceedings against seven millers topping the list of defaulters on Custom Milled Rice (CMR) and the provisions of the Revenue Recovery Act were invoked against 43 millers as part of its special drive launched for speeding up recoveries, according to the Civil Supplies Commissioner, D S Chouhan on Friday.

He made it clear that there would not be any scope for waiver of the penalty on the CMR dues. Wherever the paddy continued to be with the rice mills beyond the due date, defaulting rice millers are required to pay 25 per cent of the penalty in cash or kind and start delivering the pending custom milled rice to the state pool immediately.

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The rice millers, who defaulted on CMR due to genuine reasons would be considered for CMR milling on the sole condition that the dues were cleared. He explained that only some 362 of the 3000 and odd millers were defaulting and in some cases the default was a regular feature since 2019-20. Basing on their CMR compliance record, the millers were categorised.

In case of the millers against whom, the revenue recovery act provisions were invoked, steps were taken to ensure that the properties were not transferred to others. Even for leasing out their mills, the millers who had defaulted on CMR must produce the no dues certificate from the Civil supplies corporations. The district officials concerned have been sounded an alert in such cases.

He said in case of millers, where in the default was wilful and the rice stocks due to the corporation were also not available with the mills, prompt action was must. Continued vigilance on the operations of such millers was maintained necessarily as part of the drive to recover the outstanding quantities. The corporation was proceeding against them as per law without any hesitation and there was a significant progress in the recoveries.

Nearly 95 per cent of the millers had no issues with the Corporation and they continued to be qualify for the CMR listing even in the current year without need for any sort of campaigning. The problem was only with five per cent of the millers. In case of any lapses on the part the official machinery of the corporation contributing to the default on CMR, he said, action was being initiated as per law. In Nizamabad district, the department had to act against its own officials as CMR stocks were found missing with the millers at a few places.