Hyderabad police seize banned tobacco worth Rs 2 lakh

A person was arrested by the Tappachabutra police in Hyderabad who found banned tobacco products like gutkha, zarda and others and seized them. The police said that the worth of the seized products is estimated to be of Rs 2 lakh.

On a receipt of information, the police raided a house at Viratnagar under Tappachabutra police station limits and noticed the banned products. According to the Tappchabutra Station House Officer Santosh Kumar, Pradeep Goel aka Sai Ram had been procuring the tobacco products from various places and supplying them to local traders who then selling them to customers.

The police registered a case against the Pradeep and arrested him. He will be produced before a court.

The illegal products are reaching the market despite the government banning the sale, manufacture, consumption and distribution of the products. Last week, a well-oiled network has been found supplying the banned tobacco products such as gutka, scented supari and pan masala in Rangareddy district.

In May 2020 - a Special Operations Team (SOT) of LB Nagar seized gutka worth Rs 30 lakh at Balapur in the city. The accused was found to be supplying the material to the traders in Balapur, Shamshabad and Mailardevpally.