Chandigarh, June 5: Haryana authorities have ordered full asset verifications of non-compliant rice processors as the state prepares to launch a structured recovery program for outstanding custom-milling dues. The Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department intends for the upcoming initiative to clear a multi-year backlog of unfulfilled grain deliveries without prolonged legal gridlock.
The policy push comes amid a persistent pattern of default across multiple procurement seasons, during which operators repeatedly missed deadlines to return the mandatory 67 per cent processed rice yield to state warehouses.
“The government is planning a one-time settlement scheme for rice millers to recover pending dues,” Karnal District Food Supplies Controller Mukesh Kumar noted, adding that administrative teams are actively verifying which operators qualify for the program.
Operational data highlights the systemic nature of the defaults, with five processors failing to deliver grain worth ₹22 crore during the 2023-24 season alone. Additional disruptions were documented across earlier periods, including five non-compliant mills in 2022-23, two in 2021-22, and a peak of 16 defaulting operations during the 2013-14 cycle.
To ensure the state maintains maximum leverage before the settlement window opens, a specialized three-member investigative committee previously appointed by the district administration has executed strict physical verifications of all real estate holdings listed by defaulting owners.
The enforcement teams have already advanced asset disposal proceedings against 10 milling operations that defaulted on grain worth approximately ₹48 crore, signaling that the proposed amnesty scheme will run parallel to strict financial recoveries.
