An FIR was lodged against an incharge of a paddy procurement centre here for alleged fraud in procuring it from farmers, an official said on Wednesday.

The case was fired at Bithri Chainpur Police station after Bareilly Divisional Commissioner Sanyukta Samaddar found discrepancies in the records of a procurement centre in the Nariyawal Mandi area.?On further investigation, it was found out that the centre incharge procured the paddy from middlemen instead of farmers.

"It was found that the names and details of farmers which were recorded at the centre were not correct. We have also heard complaints that the centre incharge procures paddy from middlemen instead of farmers directly," Samaddar said. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against the centre incharge Sankalp Katiyar, the official added.

(With PTI inputs)