Acid-in-borewell: 17,500 Punjab farmers duped of Rs 17.5 crore

PATIALA: A chemical unit whose owner had been duping farmers for 13 years by promising more water drawals from their borewells through acid dumping was sealed on Wednesday for causing massive environmental damage. Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has also initiated proceedings to prosecute him in a court of law.
Navdeep Malhotra, the owner of MR Chemicals in Patiala, had reportedly duped over 17,500 farmers and has pocketed over Rs 17.5 crore in 13 years.The hapless farmers, battling steep fall in the groundwater, fell into his trap and ended up paying him Rs 10,000 for pouring 600 litres of chemicals, a dangerous cocktail of hydrochloric acid, nitric acid and sulphuric acid, in each borewell.
It was Jagdish Singh Natt, a farmer from Rajoana village, who blew the whistle on this environment devastating scam. He the reported the matter to the director, Mission Tandrust Punjab, KS Pannu, on Tuesday and this led to action by the PPCB. Natt said the marketing agents of the unit owner started distributing pamphlets in villages promising to clean up agricultural borewells with the help of chemicals.
PPCB nabs unit employee with 600 litres of acid
After I learnt of the malicious campaign, I called up the number given in the pamphlet and one of the employees of the unit turned up with 600 litres of acid to throw it into my borewell. I had also called up Pannu, who sent a team of PPCB officials; the employee was caught red-handed," he said.
PPCB scientific officer Dr Charnajit Singh said the unit owner told them that he has been dumping acid in the agricultural borewells for the last 13 years and has duped more than 17,500 farmers. Explaining how the con worked, Dr Singh said the firm representatives used to remove the motor from the borewell, pour acid into it and ask the farmers not to draw water for the next 8-12 hours, which would enable the acid to spread in the groundwater.
Pannu said he had received information that some elements were injecting chemicals into borewells and they finally managed to catch them red-handed at Rajoana village. He said the racket was traced to MR Chemicals at Patiala, where the PPCB officials carried out a raid on Wednesday and sealed the unit.
Huge quantities of acids were also confiscated from the premises as the owner failed to show any records of the chemicals. As per government norms, owners of chemical units are supposed to maintain records of every litre of acid sold. After sealing the unit, the PPCB has written to the police to register a case against the accused.
Pannu said the PPCB will carry out a survey to assess the environmental damage caused by acid in the borewells and the report will be used to sensitise the farmers against injecting chemicals in the groundwater.