VIJAYAWADA: With police and Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB) strengthening their vigil to end smuggling of liquor and other items though inter-State borders, bootleggers are finding different ways to run their illegal business.
Smugglers are using vehicles transporting essential goods such as vegetables, milk and food products to continue their illegal business.
In fact, at every checkpost, SEB teams and police are conducting checks round-the-clock in three shifts.
Ever since wine shops were opened in Telangana, people residing in the border villages from Andhra turned up in huge numbers to make use of the situation by selling the liquor purchased from the neighbouring State in the black market.
Kankipadu SEB team seized Rs 20 lakh worth non-duty paid liquor from a grass-laden lorry on Saturday.
In their investigation, SEB officials came to know that the liquor was brought from Punjab in a corn-laden lorry and then shifted to the grass-containing lorry to avoid police checking.
“In most of the cases, we won’t think the accused uses grass-containing lorry. With this incident, we told all the ground level staff to keep an eye on grass-containing and other trucks,” said the SEB Special Officer M Satti Babu.
Kankipadu incident is not an isolated case. Vissannapet police seized 200 liquor bottles that are being transported in a van carrying onion. In another incident, SEB officials seized 200 liquor bottles from a van belonging to a famous dairy unit on Sunday morning.
“It’s not a big surprise. Earlier, we used to allow vehicles carrying essential goods such as milk, food and vegetables without inspecting them. But, after such incidents are reported, we have decided not to spare any vehicle as the chances of smuggling are more in those vehicles,” said Satti Babu.