'Rotten' wheat imported knowingly

Samples of the rotten wheat. PHOTO: STAR

As the administration has no suitable place to store the huge quantity, it has been kept at the godown of the importer at the BSCIC industrial estate at Saidpur. The godown has been sealed and police have been deployed there, official sources said.

Haji Mostaq Ahamed imported the consignment of 2020 tonnes of wheat. He has a flour mill in the BSCIC estate.

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These were carried to Syedpur by 30 Indian wagons on Friday. Police seized 11 truckload of the wheat on Sunday when it became known that the food grains were rotten. About 70 tonnes were unloaded before police intervened.

Samples of the wheat have been handed over to BADC (Bangladesh Agriculture Development Corporation) for test.

Nilphamari Police Superintendent Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun told this correspondent that all papers have been seized from the importer and a case will be lodged if BADC says the wheat is unfit for human consumption.

The Deputy Commissioner, the SP, and district food department officials were present when the consignment was seized at the railway station on Sunday.

Officials said yesterday the wagons of Indian railway will be released in a day or two because Bangladesh government will have to pay demurrage of Tk seven lakh per day as per international law if those are detained.

They said the argument placed by the importer that the wheat could be damaged by rainwater on way is not acceptable. As per law, food grains imported from abroad in railway wagons must be covered with water resistant things like polythene. But no such arrangement was seen in the wagons.

"So, there is reason to believe that rotten wheat was imported knowingly", one official said.

Meanwhile, tests by the district food department revealed that the moisture content in the wheat was much higher than the normal range.

The importer also argued that he was cheated by the Indian exporter--LMJ International of Punjab.

To this, officials said that, had it been so, he should have informed the bank concerned and officials before unloading. But a large portion of the wheat was unloaded and taken away before police intervened, they said. The LC for the import was opened through Islami Bank, Saidpur.

Asked why he did not inform police before starting the unloading, the importer said he was out of Syedpur at that time, the officials said.

"It is acceptable that he was out of Syedpur while such a big consignment was being unloaded?" said an official.

The import price of the wheat was Tk 6 pet kilogram, according to the papers seized. The market price of good quality wheat is between Tk 11 and 12 in Bangladesh now, sources said.