Excise teams arrest thirty-six people in crackdown on online-fueled illicit liquor

Thirty-six people faced arrest during a two-day crackdown on illicit liquor production across 42 villages in Mahabubabad and Tandur mandals. Excise teams registered 64 cases after discovering that producers sourced a fermentation agent online following restrictions on jaggery and sugar supplies.

Seizures And Raids

Officials found that people in tribal hamlets switched to a sugar-like substance used for baking cakes to prepare the fermentation mixture. Seventeen teams carried out the raids, which led to the seizure of 217 litres of illicit liquor alongside 9,450 litres of destroyed fermentation mixture. Teams also recovered 565 kgs of jaggery, 25 kgs of a fermentation ingredient, and six vehicles, while 40 other people were bound over. Excise Enforcement Director Avinash Mohanty launched the drive, which was supervised by Excise Enforcement Joint Commissioner Anjan Rao, Warangal District Deputy Commissioner Dattu Raj Goud, Assistant Commissioner K. Naveen Kumar, and ES Karan Chand.

Context

Authorities often monitor traditional ingredients like jaggery and sugar to curb illegal alcohol production in rural areas. When supplies are restricted, producers frequently look for alternative online ingredients to bypass local controls, prompting enforcement agencies to adapt their search methods.