UP STF busts fake fertilisers racket, kingpin among three held

Lucknow, Oct 16 (PTI) The Special Task Force of Uttar Pradesh have busted a gang allegedly involved in the manufacturing and selling counterfeit fertilisers, and arrested three members, including the kingpin, officials said on Thursday.

The accused packed counterfeit Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) and other fertilisers in fake 'Bharat DAP' (Indian Potash Limited - IPL) bags and sold them to farmers in UP and other states, they said.

The STF had been receiving information about the illegal manufacturing and sale of fake DAP fertiliser for a considerable period, prompting various units to be tasked with intelligence gathering.

According to a press statement, STF arrested Rahul Singhal, the alleged kingpin, Subhash Singh and Jagan Singh on October 15.

They recovered 500 sacks of fake fertiliser and other items used in the manufacture and packaging, the statement said.

During interrogation, the kingpin revealed that they were operating an illegal manufacturing unit in Muradnagar, Ghaziabad.

He confessed to sourcing raw material from Muzaffarnagar, stating the operation yielded a profit of three to four times the cost.

Singhal also revealed that he was paying Rs 25,000 per month for the storage shed.

Samples of the seized fertiliser have been sent for technical examination and sampling by the teams of District Agriculture Officers of Mathura and Ghaziabad. Further investigation is underway. PTI CDN SMV HIG