Nagpur: With the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) Elections round the corner; there is a probability of an increase in the interstate smuggling of liquor from neighboring Madhya Pradesh. Miscreants have always been keen to take advantage of the border to smuggle low quality liquor at cheap price, thus the Excise Department has stepped up efforts to curb the trend.
Speaking to Nagpur Today, Excise Superintendent Pramod Sonone said that the department has recently conducted a meeting with the staff and made a blueprint of action plan to curb this menace ahead of NMC Polls.
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Tuesday 12 Nov. 2024
“In a bid to thwart the attempts of liquor smuggling, the Excise Department has beefed up manpower at the check posts and amplified patrolling in the border areas. We’ve also sought local support and installed signboards in the rural areas with toll free numbers to get inputs from ground zero about smuggling activities,” he said.
The Excise Superintendent has also warned anti-social elements of stern action if found engaged in unlawful activities.
Notably, between March 2021 and January 2022, the Excise Department registered a total 2,515 offences and rounded up a sum of 2.134 accused. Officials also seized 155 vehicles and materials worth Rs 2.85 crores were confiscated in this period. However, during the first wave – between April 2020 and March 2021 – the Excise Department rounded up 2,444 accused involved in 2,934 offences. The department seized property worth Rs 4.42 crore including 312 vehicles.
– Shubham Nagdeve
