The Telangana Civil Supplies Department has deployed 28 personnel drawn from the elite Greyhounds and OCTOPUS units to strengthen its Enforcement and Vigilance wing and crack down on rice millers defaulting on government obligations.
Civil Supplies Commissioner M. Stephen Raveendra chaired a briefing at Civil Supplies Bhavan on Friday to welcome the personnel and outline their mandate. The personnel have undergone a specialised three-day training at the Telangana Police Academy on departmental protocols and legal provisions relating to essential commodities.
The newly attached personnel will function as special task teams under the Enforcement and Vigilance wing and will be deployed across Telangana for surprise inspections and intensive field-level checks of defaulting millers. Their tactical training is expected to strengthen the department’s ability to conduct inspections and act against violations.
During the briefing, Mr. Raveendra highlighted the scale of paddy procurement operations, noting that the State procured a record 154 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of paddy during the Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2025-26. The State government had spent around ₹40,000 crore during the procurement cycle to support farmers, he said.
The Commissioner warned that the department would adopt a zero-tolerance approach towards misappropriation and operational defaults. Criminal cases would be registered and stringent legal action initiated against millers found violating government regulations, he said.
Published – August 21, 2026 08:00 pm IST
