Bengaluru, Nov. 4 -- Karnataka has stepped up its campaign against rice smuggling and illegal stockpiling, with the Food and Civil Supplies Department seizing more than 18 lakh kg of rice and over 250 trucks during the past two months.

Food Minister Rizwan Arshad said more than 232 people had been arrested and sent to jail as part of the intensified enforcement drive. The department was maintaining continuous surveillance to prevent subsidised rice supplied through the public distribution system from being diverted into the open market.

The minister said the government would take stringent action against individuals and traders involved in the illegal transportation, storage and sale of rice.

Expressing concern over the impact of inade...