In a joint operation, the excise department and the Ludhiana Police on Tuesday recovered 143 boxes of illicit liquor and 30,100 litre lahan in different raids in Ludhiana district.
A joint team led by Jagraon DSP Jasjot Singh, excise officer Harjot Singh along with excise inspectors and 30 police personnel conducted raids along the banks of Sutlej River in Sidhwan Bet and recovered 24,100 litre lahan in Kannian and Sherewala areas.
Assistant commissioner excise, Ludhiana West, Inderjit Singh Nagpal said an extensive search operation was carried out in the area during which the team recovered 24,00 litres of lahan stored in large polythene tarpaulins. The smugglers had tied the polythene tarpaulins with ropes and dumped them in the river. He said that these people used to extract illicit liquor by hiding lahan in the riverbed. He said that 100 litre lahan was found in an underground diggie in one of the houses. He said that 24,000-litre lahan, which was found in polythene tarpaulins, was destroyed.
“A case has been registered under the Excise Act against unidentified persons,” he added.
Nagpal said that they would continue their search operation in villages situated near the Sutlej and stern action would be taken against the accused.
In another raid, the officials recovered 6000- litres lahan in the areas falling on the banks of Sutlej River on Tuesday.
The joint operation team comprising ACP East Sandeep Singh, excise officer Preet Bhupinder Singh, excise inspectors Gurpreet Dhindsa, Navdeep Singh, Jaswinder Singh, Sukhwinder Singh conducted the raids. During the search, the team found two iron drums and five plastic tarpaulins containing around 6000 litre lahan. It was destroyed on the spot.
A case has been registered under the Excise Act against unidentified persons in this regard.
Illicit liquor: Five FIRs registered
In two separate raids, the excise department (East range) seized 143 boxes of illicit liquor and 186 bottles. Five FIRs have been registered in the matter.
Assistant excise commissioner (Ludhiana East range) Dr Shivani Gupta said that teams led by excise officers Bhupinder Singh and Neeraj Kumar were already constituted by the department to curb the menace of illicit liquor.
She said that a team comprising excise inspectors Manpreet Singh, Vijay Kumar, Satpal Singh, Ranjeet Singh, Surjeet Singh along with police recovered 186 bottles of country-made liquor during a checking at a naka.
Similarly, another team led by excise inspector Gurpreet Singh Dhindsa and local police found 143 boxes of illicit liquor in Sherpur Kalan and an FIR was registered in Moti Nagar police station.
Gupta emphasised that the drive would be further intensified to stop the smuggling of illicit liquor. She solicited the support of the public and encouraged them to provide any information about illicit liquor smuggling or manufacturing on the helpline number 9875961126.
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