With sugar prices soaring to Rs 64-66 per kg and the festival season approaching, reports of hoarding by dealers have prompted the district administration to step up its vigil against illegal stocking and black marketing.Deputy Commissioner Himanshu Jain has constituted committees at the sub-divisional level to check hoarding and black marketing of sugar in the district.Jain told The Tribune that there were reports of sugar being hoarded ahead of the festival season. The committees will be headed by the respective SDMs and will include the ACP/DCP, concerned tehsildar/naib tehsildar, officials from the Food and Supplies Department and the Director of the Mandi Board/Market Committee.“The committee will conduct regular inspections at shops and dealers to ensure that sugar is not illegally stocked or sold at higher prices,” said Jain.The DC has directed the committees to thoroughly inspect sugar mills, big dealers and stockists in their respective areas.During inspections, the sugar stock found at the premises will be matched with the stock-maintenance registers to verify whether the entries are accurate and the sugar has been dispatched as recorded.The committees have also been directed to check the prices at which sugar is being sold and ensure that there is no black marketing.If anyone is found illegally stocking sugar, strict action will be taken and the person will be booked under the law, the administration said.It may be mentioned that over the past three months, sugar prices have risen sharply from Rs 40-42 per kg to around Rs 65 per kg. There have also been allegations of illegal stocking of sugar ahead of the festival season.