Warangal Rural dist bags top rank in implementing GAPRS

Hanamkonda: Warangal Rural district tops the State in implementing gudumba affected persons rehabilitation scheme (GAPRS), informed Akun Sabharwal, the Director of Enforcement (Prohibition and Excise).

He said 1,090 persons, who engaged in gudumba (illicitly distilled liquor) preparation or transportation, were identified for providing livelihood under the scheme. The government has released funds for offering livelihood to 862 persons and alternate livelihood was already provided to 460 persons.

By the end of this month, all the persons would be offered alternate livelihood, Sabharwal told presspersons in Hanamkonda on Wednesday. He chaired a meeting with the excise officials of erstwhile Warangal district to review the status of gudumba eradication, ganja transportation and drugs awareness initiatives.

He said the excise officials in coordination with police and revenue officials have achieved 98 per cent control over gudumba brewing, transportation and consumption in Warangal division. The district wise success rate was; 100 per cent in Warangal Urban and Jangaon, 98 per cent in Warangal Rural, 96 per cent in Mahabubabad and 95 per cent Jayashanker Bhupalpally.

Of the 1,398 revenue villages in the division, 699 were gudumba affected and of them 640 villages freed as on date. 8,000 gudumba cases registered, 6,900 arrested, 7,540 persons bound over and cases of breach of binding over order booked against 230.

And cases under PD Act were booked against six persons while about nine lakhs ID liquor was destroyed from September 2015 till date. During last month, 12 cases related to ganja transportation were booked and 233 kilograms of ganja seized, the official stated.

Laying focus on drugs menace, the department has conducted awareness rallies involving students from colleges and schools. The Chief Minister, K Chandrashekar Rao, has issued clear instructions to end the menace of drugs in the state.

Sabharwal asked the officials in line with the CM’s instructions should make efforts to curtail narcotic substances transportation and also achieve 100 per cent success in gudumba eradication. He held a meeting with Warangal Urban and Rural district collectors and commissioner of police on the day. Deputy Commissioner of Excise Suresh Rathod, officials P Bala Swamy, Mahipal Reddy, Shashidhar Reddy, Dasharath, P Srinivas Rao, V Srinivas, and others were present.