Haryana Agriculture Dept Issues Notice to Plywood Factory in Yamunanagar

The warning was issued following the discovery of neem oil in urea samples, which confirms the presence of factory-produced agricultural urea that had been subjected to government subsidies.

Information indicates that on December 23 of last year, a team from the Agriculture Department visited a plywood factory in Yamunanagar's Jorian naka neighbourhood.

The team that conducted the inspection discovered 25 bags of technical-grade urea in the facility. On December 26, the team collected samples of the aforementioned urea and sent them to the Quality Control Laboratory in Karnal for analysis.

Dr. Pardeep Meel, Deputy Director of the Agriculture Department, Yamunanagar, said, "According to the lab report, neem oil content was found in this urea, which confirms the presence of subsidized agricultural grade urea in the bags of technical grade urea. A notice has been given to the owners of the factory for clarification."

A formal police report (FIR) will be filed against the factory owners if the response to the notice is deemed unsatisfactory. The industry could use technical grade urea, he added, while farmers could only use subsidized agriculture grade urea. Information indicates that the cost of technical-grade urea is Rs 3,000 per bag and the cost of subsidized agriculture-grade urea is Rs 267 per bag.

In plywood manufacturing, cheaper, agricultural grade urea that has received government subsidies is used to make glue (an adhesive). According to him, a team led by the Jagadhri SDM had been assembled on the instructions of DC Rahul Hooda to put an end to the district's urea black market.