Misappropriation of 3.39 crores in Himachal’s Kalaamba: Suspicion of illegal spirit supply under the guise of hand-sanitizer; No license received, no record of supply

On Friday, the flying squad of the Excise and Taxation Department conducted raids at Kala Amb, adding to the links of irregularities found during the inspection at Govardhan Bottling Plant in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh. The investigation revealed the illegal supply of spirit. According to the department, falsification of Rs 3.39 crore has been detected in the e-way bill of the company. An FIR has also been lodged with the police regarding this.

No license found nor proof of product

According to the information, the department conducted investigations in Dutch Formulation, an industrial complex located at Kalaamb in district Sirmaur. The team led by Mandi’s Joint Commissioner State Tax and Excise Ujjwal Rana had reached here for inspection. During investigation, it was found that no product of any kind was being manufactured in the premises. The said unit did not have any license issued by the Drug Authority.

3.39 crore difference in purchase and sale

Scrutiny of documents revealed that the unit has made purchases of Rs 8.06 crore in e-way bills in the year 2020-21 and has shown sales of around Rs 4.77 crore. The total difference between the two is Rs 3.39 crore. No stock of goods was found in the premises.

A scam was also found in the Danish lab in Ambala

Another firm Danish lab of the Dutch company is in Ambala. E-way bills of this firm were also checked. It was found that this firm has sent four consignments of hand sanitizers to CMO Dharamshala in November and December 2021. Similarly, the same firm has sent 3 consignments of hand sanitizers to Rajiv Gandhi Ayush Medical College, Paprola. The cost of all these is Rs 51 lakh.

same game happened here

Apart from this, M/s Dutch Formulation Kalaamb has also sent a consignment of hand sanitisers to Paprola College. Its price is Rs 7.50 lakh. It is also worth mentioning here that despite giving time to the said firms, no details have been made available to the department.

no record given

The department has extracted all this data from the e-way bill system. When both the departments got it investigated, they informed in writing that they have not ordered or received any such supply. These traders also do business of ENA.

This would have made 40 thousand boxes of wine.

The total illegal supply is Rs 58.50 lakh. Due to which about one lakh bulk liters of spirit can be purchased. About 37 to 40 thousand boxes of wine can be produced. During the investigation, it has been estimated that the spirit was being supplied by the said firms under the guise of supplying hand sanitizers. In this regard, the department has registered an FIR against the said firm after taking further action. The investigation continues.