Hanamkonda vigilance uncovers ₹1.8 crore paddy scam
HYDERABAD: A major paddy procurement fraud has come to light in Shayampet mandal of Hanamkonda district, where 12 farmers allegedly received payments totalling ₹1,86,63,088 for paddy that was never grown, harvested, or sold.
According to officials, records showed that the farmers had cultivated crops on 278 acres and sold 8,049 quintals of paddy to government purchase centres. However, investigators found that no cultivation or delivery had actually taken place.
Following media reports, Vigilance and Enforcement officials launched an inquiry and found that rice mill owner Bejjanki Srinivas, of Sambasiva Mini Modern Rice Mill in Kamalapur, orchestrated the scam with the help of Banda Lalitha, several agriculture officers, and private individuals.
How the fraud unfolded
Officials said Srinivas selected 12 people who owned small plots of land and falsely recorded that they had cultivated much larger areas. Using fake documents, he claimed that they supplied paddy to IKP (Indira Kranthi Patham) centres in Shayampet and Katrepalli.
He allegedly colluded with agricultural officials to misuse the online paddy procurement management system, generating fake lorry receipts and token books. As a result, the accounts of these “farmers” received payments totalling ₹1.86 crore.
Among them, funds ranged from ₹7.5 lakh to ₹22.6 lakh per person. Those credited included relatives of Srinivas and other associates, such as Bejjanki Sobharani, Bejjanki Chandu, and Bejjanki Shivakumar.
Investigation and charges
Chief Vigilance and Enforcement Officer Shashidhar Raju said the department has identified all the accounts and will recover the entire amount immediately.
The Shayampet police station has registered cases against the main accused Bejjanki Srinivas, Banda Lalitha, 12 fake farmers, and agriculture officer K.Ganga Jamuna, cluster assistant extension officers B. Archana and M. Supriya, IKP centre in-charges Haimavathi and Anitha, private lab operator Vanku Dothu Charan, and transport contractor Rajeswara Rao.
