Smugglers outsmart prohibition with ‘innovative’ tricks

Patna: In the dry state of Bihar, the liquor trade hasn’t ended— it has only grown more ‘creative’. From fuel tanks doubling as bottle racks to watermelons turned into covert carriers, smugglers are constantly innovating the illegal trade rules, turning everyday objects into unlikely conduits for alcohol.

Over the years, enforcement agencies have uncovered alcohol stashed inside vehicles, disguised among everyday goods and packed into modified compartments.

One of the more frequently misused modes of transport has been ambulances. Several seizures have been made from such vehicles, including the latest case earlier this month in Hajipur, where 108 bottles of liquor were recovered from an ambulance. In another case a few years ago, an ambulance belonging to sadar hospital in Buxar was found being used to transport liquor.

SUVs, too, have emerged as a preferred choice for smugglers. Police have found vehicles altered to create hidden spaces for bottles, with liquor concealed in modified rooftops, undercarriages and other unlikely cavities.

In one bizarre case, the Railway Protection Force seized a consignment of liquor hidden inside the ceiling of a sleeper coach of the Anand Vihar-Raxaul Satyagrah Express in April this year. The smuggling attempt came to light after passengers noticed liquid dripping from the roof of the coach. On inspection, officials found around 20 bottles stacked in the narrow overhead space.

Again in April this year, police were taken aback when they recovered liquor bottles neatly placed inside watermelons at Sonepur station. Bootleggers had created space inside watermelons and placed the tetrapack of liquor inside.

Earlier, in Jan 2018, smugglers used an oil tanker to transport liquor into Bihar. The vehicle, coming from Haryana, was intercepted in Gopalganj district.

In another case from May last year in Nawada, smugglers had hidden alcohol inside a motorcycle’s fuel tank. To keep the bike running, they had installed a separate fuel container under the seat. Police recovered 19 bottles of foreign liquor from the tank.

At one stage after prohibition was enforced, modifying LPG cylinders was also a common mode of transport for liquor. Smugglers would cut open the bottom of the cylinder to create a hollow chamber for hiding bottles.

The repeated discoveries underline both the persistence of the illegal liquor trade and the ingenuity of those involved in it. Even under strict prohibition laws, smuggling networks continue to evolve, experimenting with unconventional methods to stay ahead of enforcement agencies.

ADG (prohibition) Amit Kumar Jain said bootleggers often rely on “out-of-the-box” ideas, but asserted that an increasingly strong police network has prevented many such attempts from succeeding.

“We have informers, intelligence inputs and people also inform us through letters, WhatsApp or by calling us. Definitely it is challenging for us, but over the years, our network has become stronger and more seizures are being made,” Jain said.
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