Jagatsinghpur: In a major crackdown on the illegal manufacture of tobacco products, the Jagatsinghpur district administration and Kujang police have busted an unauthorised gutkha factory operating from a residential premises at Aligarh under Kujang police limits and arrested three persons.
The arrested accused have been identified as Subas Swain (50), Purnachandra Beura (52) and Bijay Muduli (54). Police said Swain was the main operator of the unit, while the other two were assisting in the production and packaging of gutkha.
Acting on credible information, a joint team of district administration officials and police conducted a late-night raid at the premises. During the operation, officials uncovered a large-scale illegal manufacturing unit allegedly producing and packaging fake gutkha and zarda products under the names of various brands.
Among the packets recovered from the site were labels bearing names such as Chaluopal C4, Jaypal 4, Das Patti, Bhal GPL, Chalupal C1, Suravi 55, Spicy Mix S-5, Gopal Industries Perfumery 285 and Gopal Industries Perfumery 505.
According to police, the raid led to the seizure of 660 kg of fake zarda and gutkha packed in 22 bags, 360 kg of packet zarda and gutkha, six manufacturing machines, plastic containers, approximately ₹1 lakh in cash, three mobile phones and a car bearing registration number OD 05 AG 4101.
Police said the accused were arrested on the spot and will be produced before a local court. Further investigation is underway to ascertain the source of raw materials and the distribution network linked to the illegal operation.
