Himachal excise department steps up action against illicit liquor; 54,945 litres seized since April

Shimla, Nov 22 (PTI) Intensifying its crackdown on illicit liquor, the state excise department has registered as many as 523 cases so far in the current financial year and seized around 54,945 litres of illicit liquor from across the state, officials said on Saturday.

Excise Commissioner Yunus, in a press release issued here, stated that special teams of the department are conducting raids and have seized at least 21,637.166 litres of illicit liquor and 33,308.900 litres of “lahan" (raw material) from across the state.

"Last month alone, 309.340 litres of illicit liquor and 12 litres of lahan were seized in the southern region of Shimla, along with 2,678.225 litres of illicit liquor and 14 litres of lahan in the central region of Mandi, and 529.150 litres of liquor and 4,870 litres of lahan in the northern region of Palampur," he said.

"Additionally, 286.09 litres of illicit liquor were seized in police district Baddi, 2090.625 litres in Kullu, 528.350 litres in Mandi, and 286.045 litres in Una," he added.

The Commissioner further said the state government has directed the district officials to take legal action against those involved in the trade.

"In October, the department seized large quantities of illicit liquor from several operational distilleries in villages Milwan, Thakurdwara, Barota, Bela Ludacha, and Ulehriyan in the Damtal area of the police district Nurpur, which was destroyed on the spot after taking appropriate legal action," Yunus said.

"The department has constituted 35 special teams to stop illegal liquor activities out of which four teams have been deployed in Kullu and Chamba districts each; three each in Shimla, Solan, Bilaspur, Mandi, and Una districts and the Nurpur police district; two teams each in Kangra, Sirmaur, and Hamirpur districts and the BBN police district; and one team in Kinnaur district," he said.

Yunus said the state government was keeping a close vigil on the illegal activities and taking strict action as per the rules so that the government revenue was not affected by the illegal liquor trade.

He also appealed to the people to share any information related to illegal liquor and its trade on the telephone number 0177-2620426 and WhatsApp number 94183-31426 so that any kind of illegal activity can be stopped. PTI COR PRK PRK