Major action in the Excise Department in compliance with the instructions of Chief Minister Vishnu Dev Sai
Officers in charge of three excise circles suspendedShow cause notice issued to 6 senior officialsAction taken against officials who failed to stop illegal liquor in Balodabazar, Mahasamund and Rajnandgaon districts
Raipur, 06 May 2025/ In compliance with the clear and strict instructions of Chief Minister Shri Vishnudev Sai, the Excise Department has started taking strict action against the officers who are negligent and indifferent in stopping the transportation, storage and business of illegal liquor. In the surprise inspection of the state level flying squad, three circle officers have been suspended and 6 senior officers of the Excise Department have been issued show cause notices and asked to reply after the case of illegal liquor was caught in Balodabazar, Mahasamund and Rajnandgaon districts.
According to the information received from the Excise Commissioner, in the case of negligence and indifference in stopping the illegal liquor trade, along with suspending the Circle In-charge of Balodabazar district, Mrs. Motin Banjare, show cause notice has been issued to District Excise Officer Mr. Gajendra Singh, Assistant Excise Officer and Divisional In-charge Mr. Jalesh Singh. In the raid conducted by the state level flying squad in village Banasankara of Balodabazar district in the month of April, 104 boxes of foreign liquor of Madhya Pradesh state were confiscated. This action has been taken considering the above officers guilty prima facie in this case.
Similarly, on May 3, 2025, in the case of seizure of 14 boxes of country liquor, 8 boxes of Goa, 14 boxes of beer of Odisha state and 13 pieces of foreign liquor in Bagbahara of Mahasamund district, Circle Bagbahara in-charge Mukesh Kumar Verma has been suspended, while District Excise Officer Mr. Nidhis Koshti and Divisional In-charge Mr. Uttam Buddha Bhardwaj have been issued show cause notice.
In a raid conducted by the police at a farm house in village Karwari Latmarra road in Excise Circle Dongargarh of Rajnandgaon district, 432 boxes of foreign liquor of different brands and a large quantity of empty bottles, caps, labels and 4 thousand holograms were seized. Considering the seriousness of the matter, Circle Dongargarh in-charge Anil Kumar Singh has been suspended, while the then Assistant Excise Commissioner of Rajnandgaon, Shri Yadunanandan Rathore and Divisional In-charge Shri Sandeep Sahare have been issued show cause notices and asked to reply.
It is noteworthy that Chief Minister Shri Vishnu Dev Sai had given instructions to the departmental officers to strictly ban the illegal transportation, storage and trade of liquor in the state. The Chief Minister had clearly said that the Excise Officers should strictly ban it in their respective areas and take effective action against those involved in it. Any kind of negligence in this matter will not be tolerated. The Chief Minister had also said that if the state level flying squad catches the case of illegal liquor in the districts, the concerned officers will be held responsible and action will be taken. The suspension of the officers in charge of the above three circles and the notice issued to 6 senior officers of the department is the result of this.Chief Minister Shri Vishnu Dev Sai has said that the illegal liquor business will not be allowed to flourish in the state at any cost and a ‘zero tolerance’ policy will be adopted in this direction. Excise Secretary Shri Mukesh Bansal and Excise Commissioner Shri Shyam Dhavade have directed all district and divisional officers to ensure immediate and strict action on any information of manufacturing, transportation and sale of illegal liquor. Strict disciplinary action will be taken against the concerned officers in case of any negligence in this.
