Dhenkanal: Flouting lockdown norms and offline sale restrictions, liquor trade continues as usual in Dhenkanal district as off-shops sale liquor from backdoors while government agencies turn a blind eye.
According to a source, most of the unscrupulous liquor traders here prefer to sell offline. The issue was raised before the Excise Department few days back. After it was brought to the knowledge of Dhenkanal collector Bhumesh Chandra Behera, he has ordered for an inquiry.
The district has about 39 off-shops, eight bars and beer parlours. However, the department had given permission to only 23 on-shops and seven beer parlours for online transactions.
Although the departmental officials had information about ongoing illegal liquor trade in Dhenkanal district, some of the officials having unholy nexus with traders supported them by giving indirect cover.
Behera has warned Dhenkanal excise superintendent Manoj Kumar Sethi not to let illegal trading persist further in the district as well as to take stringent actions against wrongdoers, the source said.
Giving his views on the issue, Sethi said, “We had received 2,146 orders for liquor within three days since the sale resumed. Accordingly, 2,430 litres of foreign liquor and 2,330 litres of beer were sold. It has come to our notice that, employees of liquor shops were thrashed and bottles were snatched away on the way, while they were going for home delivery”.
Many liquor traders in the district are in a state of panic over the developments, he added.