Adulterated rice racket busted

Officers attached to the Consumer Affairs Authority have uncovered a racket involving the distribution of an adulterated rice variety with added colouring to pass it off as genuine red rice among shop keepers in the plantation sector for issuing to unsuspecting plantation sector employees.

Consumer Affairs Authority officers who made the detection have now sent samples of the rice to the Government Analyst for examination and report.

Traders have said they received the stocks from suppliers in Batticaloa, Kalmunai and Ampara. However, several plantation workers alleged that traders in their areas too were involved in this racket and the colouring is done inside their shops too.