Rice worth Rs 2.7 cr, meant for mid-day meal schemes, seized

Thane rural police arrested three persons Sunday for allegedly illegally procuring rice meant for mid-day meal schemes for school children and selling it in the open market.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Atul Kulkarni said the police raided a godown of Mahadeo Food Ago Mill in Ghodbunder near here on December 25.

Its owners, Narendra Rane, Dileep Thakkar and Ashok Thakkar, were arrested under the Essential Commodities Act and National Food Security Act, 2013 on Sunday, the ASP said.

The company, which had no licence to store foodgrains or sell them in the open market, procured rice illegally from the Food Corporation of India (FCI), he said.

Police seized 12,035 gunny bags of rice containing 5.70 lakh kg of rice, valued at Rs 2.69 crore, from the godown, he said.

This rice was meant for distribution to fair price (ration) shops, to be used for mid-meal schemes in schools in tribal and rural areas, he said.

The police also seized ten trucks and two rice-cleaning and sorting machines. Further probe is on.