HYDERABAD, Aug 6: DCO Ali Ahmed on Wednesday directed fertiliser dealers to sell urea fertiliser at controlled price of Rs635 per bag and if they failed to follow official rate the district government would take action against them.

He said at a meeting of revenue officials and dealers at Shahbaz Building that the dealers should display price lists in conspicuous places in their shops and inform fertiliser inspectors and revenue magistrates about stock position.

He expressed concern over artificial shortage of urea fertilizer in Hyderabad and directed the representatives of fertiliser producing companies to declare their authorised and unauthorised godowns with stock position and establish godowns if they did not have any.

He directed them to maintain supply of regional quota and keep the district government updated on details of supply to dealers. The DCO formed a committee headed by EDO of revenue Syed Barkaat Rizvi with EDO of agriculture, DO of revenue and a representative each from the Chamber of Agriculture Sindh, Sindh Abadgar Board, fertiliser producing companies and dealers associations as members to coordinate and prepare market mechanism in a way that discouraged shortage of fertiliser and its sale in black-market.

The DCO directed the revenue magistrates to pay surprise visits to market, check record of dealers and companies godowns, ensure enforcement of controlled price in the market and take action against the hoarders, profiteers and proprietors of unauthorised godowns.

He directed the committee members and revenue magistrates to identify causes behind shortage of fertiliser in Hyderabad when the neighbouring district had sufficient quantity of the agricultural inputs.

He said that the district governments of neighbouring districts had also been asked to break up network of hoarders if any in their districts so that the supply of fertiliser could be regularised.

The DCO established three complaint centres at his secretariat each with telephone numbers, 9200202, 9200058 and 9200244 and at the office of each DDO of revenue to receive complaints from growers.

EDO of agriculture Shahabuddin Siddiqui briefed the meeting about stock position of fertiliser in the district and his efforts to regularise supply and enforce fertilizer sale at controlled prices.

Dr Zulfiqar A. Yousufani, vice-president of Sindh Abadgar Board, informed the meeting that despite the fact that the government had exempted fertilizer producing companies from 15 per cent sales tax the dealers were selling urea fertiliser at the rate of Rs800 as against the controlled price of Rs635 per bag.

He demanded that strict action be taken against hoarders and profiteers and unauthorised godowns. EDO revenue Syed Barkaat Rizvi, DO revenue Sajjad Hyder, all revenue magistrates of the district and representatives of growers associations and fertiliser producing companies attended the meeting.