Duplicate liquor factory busted in Dhenkanal by excise officials, assets worth over Rs 20 lakh seized

The Odisha Excise Department conducted a major raid on a clandestine liquor manufacturing unit in Kandarsinga village under Parajang police limits of Dhenkanal district, seizing fake foreign liquor and production materials valued at over Rs 20 lakh.

The large-scale operation led to the arrest of a woman operating the facility, while her husband managed to evade capture.

143 Litres of Fake Liquor Seized

Reports stated that authorities recovered 143 litres of foreign liquor, 6 litres of flavouring agents, 10 litres of caramel, and 7,265 branded labels of various reputed liquor companies. Additionally, 17,997 counterfeit caps and a machine used for producing the illicit liquor were confiscated during the raid.

The factory was allegedly producing adulterated liquor by mixing various branded spirits and repackaging them as legitimate products.

The woman identified as Padmini Nayak, who was allegedly running the illegal operation, was taken into custody, while her husband, Bichitra Nayak, remains at large. Investigators are continuing to probe the source of raw materials and the distribution network for the spurious liquor.

ALSO READ: Country liquor breweries busted in Odisha’s Gajapati; huge cache of alcohol seized

Action By Authorities

The raid was carried out on Saturday night by an independent team of the Excise Department following intelligence inputs about the counterfeit liquor production.

Sources reported that excise officials are currently assessing the total value of the seized items, which is estimated to exceed Rs 20 lakh, and are working to trace the complete supply chain. As of the last reports, a manhunt is on to nab the absconding Bichitra Nayak as well as identify other accomplices in the operation.