Majuli police use road rollers to crush bottles of illegal liquor, 1,475 litres destroyed

Dibrugarh: Majuli police on Thursday destroyed 1,475.725 litres of seized illegal liquor by crushing bottles with a road roller at Darbar Chapori, as part of a major drive against illicit alcohol in the district.The operation also saw the destruction of 383 kg of molasses, locally known as Kali Gur, used to produce the illicit country liquor ‘sulai’.The Liquor Disposal Committee, constituted by Majuli DC Shrishti Singh, carried out the exercise following court orders. It followed a series of anti-liquor drives across the district in which police seized large quantities of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL), beer and other illegal alcohol.According to SSP Majuli Somalin Subhadarsini, cases were registered at the respective police stations in connection with the seizures. Over the past year, Majuli police arrested 19 individuals in 16 cases and produced them before the court. Police later sought permission to destroy the seized liquor, following which the court issued the necessary orders.SSP Subhadarsini said the crackdown would continue. “This campaign will go on in the coming days. Our aim is to make Majuli addiction-free and to preserve the social, cultural and intellectual environment of this island,” she added.The action assumes significance given Majuli’s cultural and spiritual importance. The world’s largest river island, it has been Assam’s cultural capital since the 16th century and is regarded as the epicentre of Vaishnavism propagated by Srimanta Sankardeva. Majuli is home to the Satras founded by Sankardeva and Madhavdeva, which preserve centuries-old traditions of dance, music, art, drama and literature.Residents welcomed Thursday’s action. Officials said the campaign would be intensified across Majuli, with police maintaining a zero-tolerance approach to the manufacture, sale and distribution of illicit alcohol.