Even as the Department of Prohibition and Excise is going all out to curb the menace of gudumba (illicitly distilled liquor), acute space constraints at almost all excise police stations are proving to be major hurdles for storing the seized vehicles allegedly involved in transportation of ID liquor.
The Excise Department personnel are finding it difficult to store the vehicles confiscated during raids on ID liquor dens and vehicle checking drives given due to paucity of open space at the excise stations to park the detained vehicles.
Dozens of seized vehicles are gathering dust at the cramped space on the premises of the excise station at NSP camp colony here.
The situation is more or less similar in the remaining 13 excise stations in the district, sources said.
All the 14 excise stations in the district are functioning from rented buildings.
Major challenge
The personnel manning the excise stations are facing a major challenge in keeping the seized vehicles under the safe custody for long periods.
The severe scarcity of space for parking in the excise police stations came into sharp focus at a time when the Excise department is bracing for an all out war against the gudumba menace ahead of Dasara festival.
The paucity of open space in the excise stations is posing hurdles to the storage of seized vehicles, says Mahesh Babu, Deputy Commissioner, Prohibition and Excise Department, Khammam.
Special drive
The matter has been represented to the higher authorities, he says, adding that land has already been acquired for ten excise stations for construction of own buildings in the district. A total of 75 vehicles including autorickshaws, and motorbikes were seized for offences like transporting ID liquor and black jaggery, used for brewing illicit liquor, as part of a special drive in the district last month.
