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"ROTTEN" IMPORTED WHEAT

Probe body formed, godowns sealed

OUR CORRESPONDENT, Nilphamari
The district administration has formed five-member committee to probe the import of "rotten and stinky" wheat from India.
Headed by Additional District Magistrate Nitai Pada Shah, the committee includes Syedpur Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Shamsul Hoq, ASP (Syedpur Circle) Khandaker Shahidul Islam, Customs Superintendent Tarapada Shah and Nilphamari District Food Controller Raihanul Kabir.
The committee began probe on Wednesday and will submit its report in a week.
The Officer-in-Charge of Syedpur thana told newsmen that the committee has been formed at the directive of higher authorities.
He said a decision to send samples of the imported wheat to BADC (Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation) laboratory for test was later changed. The samples will be sent for test after receipt of the inquiry report, he said.
The administration has lodged a general dairy (D|GD) with police against the importing firm-- Sonia Enterprise owned by Hazi Mostaq Ahamed. The GD will be turned into a regular case if the probe report says the imported wheat is unfit for human consumption, other sources said.
Unloading of the seized wheat from Indian railway wagons at Syedpur Railway station was completed on Thursday. Those have been stored at the godown of the importing farm, Sonia Enterprise, at the BSCIC estate in Syedpur. The godowns have been sealed and police deployed there, official sources said.
The eleven trucks loaded with the wheat which were seized by police were released on Thursday after unloading and taking bond from the truck drivers.
The importer had imported 2020 tonnes of wheat valued at Tk three crore though LC opened with Islami Bank, Syedpur.
Deputy Vice President of the bank in Syedpur Md Kaisar told newsmen that the Sonia Enterprise had opened LC by depositing 10 per cent margin. He said the bank will also go for legal action against the importer after obtaining required papers.
It was gathered that there are a number of cases against the farm with the Artho Rin Adalot ( court for realising loan money from defaulters).
Sources meanwhile said that about a month ago, the Delhi office of the Food Corporation of India had made an advertisement for auction of a huge quantity of allegedly substandard wheat. Subsequently, it sold four lakh metric tons of wheat in auction at
the rate of Tk 2 per kg.
The "rotten" wheat brought to Bangladesh could be part of that consignment, imported through LMJ International of Punjub.
It is also gathered that two other importing firms in Nilphamari had been preparing to import wheat from India. But the move has been shopped after the seizure of the wheat imported by Sonia Enterprise.
LMJ International had dispatched the wheat to Bangladesh from Moga rail station in Punjub on August 30. Thirty Indian railway wagons carrying the consignment reached Rohonpur in West Bengal on September 7 and to Darsana land port in Bangladesh on September 8 and were released by customs the same day. These came to Syedpur on September 10.
About 700 tonnes were unloaded on the following day. Police intervened as bad smell spread from the wagons. They later seized eleven truckloads of the wheat. But whereabouts of the 700 metric tonnes unloaded before police intervention is still not known.
The importer earlier claimed that he had imported good quality wheat which were cleared by customs. Those could be damaged by rain on the way.