180 boxes of country liquor diverted from Kala Amb factory impounded

Tribune News Service

Solan, June 7

As many as 180 boxes of country liquor diverted from Kala Amb factory were seized by a team of Theog police near Chaila on the Chaila-Theog road from a tempo in the wee hours today.

The liquor was part of the 700 boxes consignment which was supposed to reach Chamba but had been diverted from Kala Amb to Shimla district. A truck carrying 300 boxes from this consignment had overturned at Nahan on Tuesday night which had exposed this unauthorised diversion of liquor.

Himanshu Pawar, Deputy Commisioner, State Taxes and Excise Department (STED), Sirmaur, confirmed that 180 boxes of country liquor comprising 2,160 bottles diverted from Kala Amb has been seized near Chaila by the Theog police last night while the remaining 220 boxes were yet to be traced.

A case under the HP Excise Act has been registered at Theog while Vishal, who was driving the tempo, was being interrogated for ascertaining where he had picked up the liquor boxes.

Pawar said a report regarding diversion of liquor from Kala Amb to Shimla by the concerned licensee would soon be sent to the Collector, STED, for further action.

He said the stock of the Kala Amb-based distillery from where the liquor was picked up has been inspected where minor aberrations were found. He said that the distillery was yet to install the trace and track hardware for ensuring end to end online monitoring of liquor.

Despite tall claims of the department to introduce measures like holograms on each liquor bottle and ensure GPR-enabled vehicles for transporting liquor not even one such measure has been introduced in the state.

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