DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

In a concerted effort to uphold the integrity of the electoral process, enforcement agencies in Punjab have undertaken rigorous operations, leading to the seizure of cash, liquor, drugs, precious metals, and freebies valued at Rs. 609.38 crore since March 1, till date.

Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Punjab, Sibin C disclosed that the seizures, since March 1, include cash amounting to Rs. 11.2 crores, 27.95 lakh liters of liquor valued at Rs. 18 crores, drugs valued at Rs. 563.53 crores, precious metals totaling Rs. 14.94 crores, and freebies valued at Rs. 1.69 crores, summing up to Rs. 609.38 crores. Punjab ranks 4th nationally in terms of seizures made, while Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan ranked 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively.

He informed that 24 enforcement agencies are actively operating in the state. Since enforcement of Model Code of Conduct (MCC) on 16 March till date, total seizure by all agencies valued at 514.81 crores. Punjab Police has made highest seizures in the state amounting to Rs. 404.2 crores, followed by the Border Security Force Rs. 23 crores, Income Tax Department Rs. 9.28 crores, State Excise Department Rs. 8.29 crores, State Goods and Service Tax Department Rs. 5 crores, Customs Department Rs.4.37 crores, and Narcotics Control Bureau Rs. 2.54 crores.

Among the districts Jalandhar topped the list with total seizures made worth Rs. 141.25 crores, followed by Amritsar with Rs. 93.96 crores, Tarn Taran with Rs. 59.55 crores, Firozpur with Rs. 54.58 crores, and Fazilka with Rs. 42.1 crores.

Other districts with significant seizures include Ludhiana Rs. 27.86 crores, Pathankot Rs. 21.4 crores, , Sangrur Rs. 11.7 crores, Gurdaspur Rs. 10.75 crores, Patiala Rs. 7.29 crores, Barnala Rs. 7.2 crore Moga Rs. 6.73 crores .

Furthermore, Kapurthala recorded seizures worth Rs. 6.41 crores, Hoshiarpur Rs. 5.01 crores, Bathinda Rs. 4.31 crores, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar Rs. 4.63 crores, Sri Muktsar Sahib Rs. 1.75 crores, Rupnagar Rs. 1.7 crores, Mansa Rs. 1.5 crores, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar Rs. 1.15 crores, Malerkotla Rs. 2.07 crores, Faridkot Rs. 1.29 crores and Fatehgarh Sahib Rs. 64.2 Lakhs.
(editor@dailyworld.in)