Illicit liquor trade booms in Majha despite crackdown
Lockdown sees spike in business; 6 lakh litre lahan seized in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Pathankot districts in last 4 months
AMRITSAR: Even as the Punjab Police and the excise department launched a crackdown, illicit liquor trade continues to be rampant in Majha. The lockdown has seen a spike in trade with the excise department recovering more than 6 lakh litres of lahan (raw material used for making illicit liquor) in four districts — Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur and Pathankot — during the past four months.
The number of cases registered have been 1,196 in 120-odd days or around 10 cases a day.
“I haven’t seen such huge recoveries during my three decades with the department,” said a senior officer of the department in Amritsar, on the condition of anonymity. He added the spurt in illicit liquor trade resulted with the liquor in shops getting dearer and increase in unemployment due to the lockdown.
Amritsar’s rural areas and Tarn Taran’s Mand areas, situated near the river beds of Sutlej and Beas, are major locations where illicit liquor is made. In July, an excise department team had recovered 2.5 lakh litres of lahan kept in 18 drums and 1,600 bottles of illicit liquor in the Mand area.
Roshan Lal, sarpanch of Harike village, said, “There are some villages on the Sutlej and Beas riverbeds, where the mafia still produce illicit liquor. These villages include Marad, Kirian, Gharka, Chamba and Kambo.”
Mohinder Singh of Chamba village said, “Mafia men stop producing illicit liquor only police conduct raids, and that too for a day or two.” Harikrishan Arora, a social activist in Tarn Taran, said, “One can purchase countrymade illicit liquor from any locality of the city. Police started acting only after May, when the Punjab CM ordered a crackdown on illicit liquor mafia.” Patti deputy superintendent of police Kuljeet Singh said, “Liquor mafia men dig a pit along the riverbed, spread a tarpaulin and mix raw ingredients of illicit liquor in it. Our area is free of the menace.”
50% CASES REGISTERED IN AMRITSAR
Data that HT has accessed from the department shows 590 cases were registered in Amritsar, with the recovery of 75,500 litres of Lahan, 7,500 bottles of illicit liquor and 1,300 bottles of PML (Punjab made liquor) and IMFL (Indian made foreign liquor).
The department registered 29 cases in Tarn Taran district and recovered around 4.6 lakh litre of Lahan and 2,000 litre of illicit liquor. In Gurdaspur and Pathankot districts, the department has recovered 70,907 litres of Lahan, 9,638 litres of illicit liquor and 1,496 litres of illicit liquor.
“The recovery during the lockdown this year is more than the recovery made during the last one year,” said excise and taxation officer (ETO), Gurdaspur, Lavinder Singh Brar, adding, “People were sitting idle at home and decided to produce homemade liquor than purchasing it from liquor shops. We had strict instructions to check the trade.”
The cases of the excise department are different from those which have been registered by the police on its own. Joint operations are also carried out.