25K litres of ENA seized in Lalru

Tribune News Service

Mohali, December 29

In a joint operation by the Punjab Excise Department and the Mohali police, an organised module allegedly involved in smuggling of ENA (extra neutral alcohol) into Punjab was busted in Lalru today.

Joint Excise Commissioner Naresh Dubey said inputs were received that a few persons were allegedly smuggling ENA into Punjab and Chandigarh to evade duty, causing losses to the state exchequer.

On the night of December 28, a joint team of the Excise Department’s Special Operations Group and the Mohali police deputed at the Lalru inter-state border intercepted a tanker (KA 02 AB 9232) carrying 25,000 litres of ENA.

The driver and his accomplice produced some documents in support of the consignment, but these were found to be fake, said an official.

The illegal consignment was reportedly meant to be supplied to a bottling plant in Chandigarh whose liquor brands have been confiscated in huge quantities in Punjab. As per the statement of the driver, the ENA was loaded from Chhattisgarh.

Rajat Agarwal, Punjab Excise Commissioner, said the entire chain of forward and backward linkages leading to disclosure of the main suppliers and recipient of ENA was being pursued expeditiously.

Meant for UT plant

• The illegal consignment was reportedly loaded from Chhattisgarh
• It was meant to be supplied to a bottling plant in Chandigarh, said sources
• The consignment could produce 1.10 lakh bottles of country liquor

19K FIRs in 18 months

As many as 19,784 FIRs have been registered in Punjab in cases related to the seizure of illicit liquor between May 17, 2020, and December 11, 2021. In all, 19,689 persons were arrested and 3,32,693 litres of illicit liquor, besides huge quantity of lahan, seized.