5,838 litres of illicit liquor seized, 28 held in crackdown across U.P.
The excise teams also conducted confidential test purchases to investigate overpricing and illegal sales in various districts.
: In a major crackdown, 5,838.57 litres of illicit liquor was seized and 28 offenders were arrested in Uttar Pradesh within a week, a press note from the state government media cell said on Saturday.
The contraband seized included country-made, Indian-made foreign liquor, and raw liquor following extensive raids, vehicle checks and secret investigations involving the excise department, police, and administrative teams, the press note added.
Officials also destroyed a total of 16,280 kilogram of lahan (raw material used in brewing country made liquor).
The excise teams also conducted confidential test purchases to investigate overpricing and illegal sales in various districts.
Lakhimpur Kheri reported the highest seizures with confiscation of 300 litres of illegal liquor and the destruction of 1,270 kilograms of lahan (raw material for country made liquor) during operations carried out in different villages. In Jhansi, the authorities recovered 590 litres of illicit raw liquor. In Unnao, raids led to the seizure of 280 litres of illegal liquor and the destruction of 700 kilograms of lahan.
The excise teams also uncovered illegal liquor production at brick kilns in Gorakhpur, Sultanpur, Pilibhit, and Deoria. In Gorakhpur-Deoria, authorities seized 20 litres of raw liquor and destroyed 100 kilograms of lahan. In Sultanpur, 35 litres of illegal liquor was seized and 150 kilogram of lahan destroyed.
At the Uttarakhand-Moradabad border, the assistant excise commissioner (EIB) conducted intense vehicle checks to stop liquor smuggling. Similar checks were carried out on the Bijnor-Moradabad border and the Delhi-Moradabad zero point, preventing illegal liquor transport. In Unnao, 134.97 bulk litres of foreign liquor from Haryana was seized from two cars near the Jogi Kot Underpass on the Agra Expressway, leading to the arrest of three smugglers.
Among those arrested, there were seven, including three women in Unnao, two women in Jhansi, one person in Pilibhit, and three people in Gautam Buddha Nagar, Lalitpur, Hamirpur, and Fatehpur. Additionally, three smugglers were arrested in Unnao for smuggling foreign liquor.
