DELHI: Almost 2.5 lakh liquor bottles that were illegally smuggled into, stored or sold were seized by the Excise Intelligence Bureau in Delhi.
Both lieutenant governor Anil Baijal and chief minister Arvind Kejriwal are looking to restrain the regulation of liquor sale keeping in view public safety, particularly of women.
Out of the 2,53,361 bottles seized in the capital, liquor accounted for 1,51,819 is consumed mostly by low income citizens. Indian Made Foreign Liquor that is popular among the middle and upper middle-income groups, bottles numbered 95,352, while high end brands numbered around 6,189.
Certain areas where liquor is illegally smuggled in Delhi are Wazirpur JJ colony, Jahangirpuri, Sultanpuri, Mangolpuri, Shakurpur, Raghubir Nagar, Uttam Nagar, Sagarpur, Sangam Vihar and Nand Nagri.
The excise department also said that smuggling in of liquor mostly in the slum areas or unauthorized colonies or open drinking or liquor abuse, especially among youngsters were quite big problems in Delhi. The commissioner held a meeting with the licensed wholesale suppliers of country liquor and asked them to ensure there was no short supply.
The suppliers have been warned that if their role in smuggling of liquor to Delhi is reported, stringent action will be followed against them.
