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By Jaykishan Sharma: A crime branch team has busted a racket involved in stealing high-quality, imported coal during transportation from the Gujarat port to the northern states via Rajasthan. The crime branch officials said coal imported from the US and Russia was being stolen every day from trucks transported to Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.
According to the police, the gang used to replace high-calorific value coal imported from foreign countries with low-quality charcoal. After the racket involved in coal theft worth Rs 1,000 crore was busted, India Today reporter Jaykishan Sharma travelled to two districts of Western Rajasthan.
An investigation by Rajasthan police revealed that an organised racket was involved in coal theft amounting to more than Rs 1000 crore. According to police, the gang had created 13 illegal settlements across the highway stretches of Sanchore-Jalore, Barmer, Jodhpur rural, Jodhpur city, Siorhi, Bikaner and Pali.
The accused were openly running the racket in one of the sheds created in Bhooka Bhagat Singh village of Barmer district.
HOW DID THE GANG OPERATE?
The ground report reveals that every night a truck used to halt at an illegal tin shed spread across 10,000 yards of the village adjacent to the Highway connecting Kandla-Barmer-Jodhpur. On entering the settlement, one would find a weighing machine in the shed along with low-quality materials mixed with imported coal.
The higher calorific value coal was replaced by lower quality, re-sealed again and was further sent.
When the India Today team reached one more settlement in Boranada in the Jodhpur district, a team from the Rajasthan crime branch was surveying one of the settlements constructed on a highway. The area had loading vehicles, high-quality coal and sand mixed with gravel to replace high-calorific-value coal.
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“The high calorific value coal imported from Russia, Indonesia, the US and other foreign countries was imported to Kandla and Gandhidham ports in Gujarat. From there, trucks laden with high-calorific value coal were used to reach private companies in other states through Jalore, Sirohi, Jodhpur, Bikaner and Barmer,” the officials told India Today.
POOR QUALITY MATERIALS MIXED WITH SAND
The stolen coal was replaced with poor-quality material mixed with sand and stones to make sure that the weight of the vehicle was maintained.
“19 people have been detained. As many as 13 trucks, three LNT machines, two tractors, four tankers, two cutter machines, printers, 20 drums of charcoal and 1850 tons of imported coal have been seized from different spots, “Additional Director General of police, Crime, Dinesh MN told India Today.
The accused, in connivance with the truck driver, intercepted the vehicles at sheds constructed across the highway and replaced stock worth at least Rs 2 lakh with low-quality coal, police said.
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