CHANDIGARH: More than two years after whistleblower IAS officer Ashok Khemka exposed the scam related to purchase of Raxil fungicide by the state, the BJP government in Haryana has recommended a CBI probe into the matter. Confirming the same on Thursday, the CM's principal secretary Sanjeev Kaushal told the TOI that the decision has been taken following opinion of advocate general B R Mahajan.

"The CM approved the decision for CBI probe couple of days back," he said. The issue involves alleged financial bungling of more than Rs 80 crore.

CM Manohar Lal Khattar's OSD Jawahar Yadav added, "The matter relates to the farmers of state. The BJP government will take suitable action whenever it finds any wrong being done to them."

In April, the state government had recommended a probe by the Central Vigilance Commission following the recommendations of a parliamentary committee. However, the CVC has been refusing to probe the matter stating it does not have the jurisdiction.

According to the state agriculture minister Om Prakash Dhankar, the purchase of fungicide for wheat seed treatment for prevention of a disease 'Karnal Bunt' was started in 2010-11 without necessary approval from the government bodies and continued till 2014.

The matter is also being heard by the Punjab and Haryana high court following a PIL filed by NGO Bhiwani Sudhar and Vikas Samiti. The Union government had informed the high court that the fungicide had not been approved by Central Insecticide Board and Registration Committee (CIBRC) for controlling Karnal bunt disease.

On the other hand, the German company Bayar Crop Science had also submitted before the court that it never claimed that the fungicide was meant to control the said disease. It was Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agriculture University (CCSHAU) which recommended the fungicide for its treatment, the company has claimed. It had also mentioned that it was providing the fungicide to Haryana government on much cheaper rate as compared to other places.

In April 2013, senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka had to face abrupt transfer from the post of managing director of the Haryana Seed Development Corporation after he had raised objections to purchase of the fungicide on the grounds that there was no credible scientific research either by any agriculture university or the manufacturing company that Raxil controlled Karnal bunt disease in wheat crop. The fungicide is also not registered with the appropriate body.

