Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh steps up vigil to stop liquor flow

Amaravati : The Andhra Pradesh government has set up 45 integrated checkposts in its districts bordering Karnataka to rein in the flow of illegal liquor, cash and other inducements to the poll-bound state, Chief Secretary K S Jawahar Reddy said on Monday.

The checkposts would be manned by officials from police, excise, commercial taxes, revenue and other departments, he said. "Already, 3,008 litres of Indian made foreign liquor (IMFL), 444 tetra packs of 90 ml liquor cartons and two and half kg of marijuana have been confiscated," the Chief Secretary said in a video conference organised by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

On Monday, senior AP government officials attended an ECI video conference meeting focused on restricting the movement of liquor, cash and other inducements to influence voters during Karnataka's single-phase elections to be held on May 10. Officials from Telangana, Maharashtra, Goa, Kerala and Tamil Nadu also attended the meeting.

"On Monday, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar along with other Election Commissioners held a video conference with the Chief Secretaries, DGPs, Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) and other senior officials," said a statement from the State government.

During the conference, the CEC directed the border states to restrict the flow of inducements by setting up checkposts and also restricting the entry of anti-social elements.

From Andhra Pradesh, apart from Chief Secretary Jawahar Reddy, Director General of Police K V Rajendranath Reddy, CEO Mukesh Kumar Meena, Special Chief Secretary Rajath Bhargava and other senior officials participated.