Odisha Excise dept uncovers secret country liquor distillery in Bhubaneswar

A large-scale illicit liquor distillery was once again uncovered in Salia Sahi in Odisha’s Bhubaneswar on Thursday, barely weeks after a similar operation was destroyed in the same area. Thousands of litres of country liquor were being prepared inside a residential house, which the owner had converted into a concealed manufacturing unit.

According to reports, the Bhubaneswar Excise Department conducted a raid on the premises following a reliable tip-off. Initially, officials found nothing suspicious, but a thorough reinspection of the house revealed a secret doorway behind a table inside a bedroom. This hidden entry led directly to a chamber where large-scale country liquor production was underway.

The excise team discovered that the manufacturers had stacked mahula flowers and sugar, some raw materials mixed together, and stored the fermenting mixture in numerous plastic buckets under extremely unhygienic conditions. 

During the raid, officers found that the contents had gone stale, with maggots crawling over the spoiled material. The individuals involved, had also set up tankers, gas stoves, and distillation equipment to extract liquor from the mixture.

Authorities Vow Stringent Action

Bhubaneswar Excise Department official Debashish Patel said, “We had received credible information and conducted a raid on the house. At first, nothing seemed out of place, but since the tip was reliable, our team thoroughly searched again and discovered the hidden chamber behind the table.”

He further added, “Just two weeks ago, we had destroyed another similar setup. The offenders are going to great lengths to manufacture illicit country liquor, but we will continue to uncover and dismantle such operations. We have already sought details of the property from the BMC, and this unit too will soon be demolished.”