Ludhiana, May 17 -- With the paddy sowing season underway, the agriculture department in Ludhiana has intensified efforts to ensure that banned hybrid seeds are not sold in the district's seed markets.

The crackdown follows last year's controversy when a purported hybrid of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU)'s PR 126 was sold to farmers at inflated prices, leading to significant losses.

Though originally priced at around Rs.150 per kg, the seeds were allegedly sold for as high as Rs.3,600 per kg. The hybrid was later blamed for high breakage percentages in rice grains, drawing concerns from millers and causing delays in crop procurement from mandis.

"This year, we've been proactively monitoring seed sales for over a month," said dist...