Cops zero in on syndicate that could be behind poison hooch

The Express team tracked down his house in Mahitala near Magrahat in South 24-Parganas,but found the door locked. No one is inside,said locals.

They added that Noor Islam alias Badsha stays in his palatial house in Baruipur most of the time,and visits this house occasionally. Earlier,Noor enjoyed the patronage of the Left but,since the last election,he has allegedly switched loyalties to the Trinamool Congress.

Badsha reportedly played an active role during the recent clash between the police and villagers in Magrahat when a team of state electricity board officials and the police arrived to stop illegal hooking of power in Magrahat village and were attacked.

The district magistrate of South 24-Parganas confirmed that a hunt had been launched for Noor Islam aka Badsha because the contamination of the illicitly distilled liquor was tracked down to the “bhatti” (distillery) he was running in the area. Top district officials said he ran several “illegal bhattis” in the area,particularly at Gocharan,Magrahat,Sangrampur and elsewhere,catering to a huge area in the district and also the thickly populated southern outskirts of Kolkata.

Police sources said the syndicate worked in a chain,with Badsha financing the production and manufacturing costs. The manufacturing units are usually mobile and set up in remote village fields. When production starts,at times 70-80 ovens are operated to prepare the lethal mix of molasses,water and a catalyst agent,which some say is procured from herbs and tree shells that are peeled off. The mix is boiled at a high temperature and the vapour that the containers emits is channelized to be deposited in separate containers in liquid form,which is actually the brew. At times,some chemicals are mixed to give it an extra kick.

D K Chakrabarty,Commissioner of the State Excise,West Bengal,said that this year,a total of 58 lakh litres of illicit liquor had been seized from different areas and 28,500 cases were registered. The state excise arrested about 4,075 couriers and carriers who ferry the brew in plastic containers. There are 27,000 illicit syndicate owners across the state that produce such illicit liquor,he said.

According to a senior official of the department,the seized quantity is just the tip of the iceberg. According to rough estimates,the state loses revenue to the tune of Rs 150-200 crore every year because of the mushrooming of these units and a parallel liquor business.

Badsha’s first consignments are dispatched in early morning trains to various locations in the Sealdah South division,right under the noses of railway police,police and excise officials.

According to those who regularly consumed Badsha’s products,the brew is sold in four quantities. The smallest glass costs just Rs 5. A 300 ml pouch costs Rs 10 and 500 ml one Rs 20.

Badsha hires labours from neighbouring villages too. They are offered Rs 150 to 200 per day for working in the production units of Noor.

However,his role ends in producing bulk quantities. Badsha’s hooch is sold to middlemen,who lift their daily stock according to the retail outlets they serve. In each stage,however,there are chances of contamination by the middlemen. They might pour water or other chemicals to increase the quantity,the profit margins and the element of toxicity as well.

Evidently,it is a demand-driven market and the arrest of Badsha may serve as a temporary break in a particular region,but to eliminate the entire illicit trade is an impossible task,say sources from law enforcement agencies.