Liquor worth Rs 1.79 crore seized on Rajkot-Ahmedabad highway in Surat

Surat, Aug 18 (IANS) Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) team seized 13,931 bottles of liquor worth Rs 1.79 crore along with valuables, bringing the total haul to over Rs 2.08 crore, from a truck parked inside a hotel compound near Baldana village on the Rajkot-Ahmedabad highway. Two persons were arrested, while four others linked to the case remain at large.

According to SMC officials, the truck was found in a suspicious condition on the premises of Panchdev Hotel. A search revealed liquor worth Rs 1,78,67,900, a truck valued at Rs 30 lakh, three mobile phones worth Rs 15,000, and cash worth Rs 5,825. Those arrested have been identified as Dharmesh alias Dhruv Dineshbhai of Joravarnagar and truck driver Achalraj Rajuram of Rajasthan.

The four others named in the case include Vijay Lakhdhir Khachar of Wadhwan -- identified as the main accused who ordered the liquor -- along with his partner Narendra Kanubhai Jalu, Manish alias Sutar Sharma from Rajasthan, and his associate Sataram Jat. All six have been booked under the Prohibition Act.

Throughout 2025, Gujarat continued to grapple with extensive liquor smuggling despite stringent prohibition laws. In the first two months alone, the State Monitoring Cell (SMC) seized liquor worth Rs 6.58 crore, encompassing illicit consignments and associated assets valued at Rs 11.47 crore -- nearly one-third of the previous year's total enforcement figures.

Mid-year raids added significantly to the tally -- the SMC recovered foreign-made liquor worth Rs 1.19 crore from a farmhouse in Surendranagar, while in Bharuch, authorities intercepted a massive haul of ‘Goa liquor’ -- 56,640 bottles valued at Rs 1.27 crore.

Meanwhile, at the Gujarat-Madhya Pradesh border in Dahod, police seized 17,316 bottles disguised inside a gas tanker, with an estimated value of Rs 30.57 lakh -- bringing the total seizure (including vehicle) to around Rs 50.62 lakh. And just this week, in Bareja, Ahmedabad Rural LCB unearthed 792 concealed bottles and beer cans worth Rs 2.76 lakh.

Together, these operations reveal not only the vast volume of illegal liquor entering the state but also the persistence and sophistication of smuggling networks.

--IANS

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