Scanners to help curb liquor smuggling in Uttar Pradesh

The Uttar Pradesh excise department will soon use handheld high-tech X-ray scanning machines, besides taking help of a data analytics agency to give an impetus to its crackdown on inter-state smuggling of illicit liquor.

- Qazi Faraz Ahmad

LUCKNOW:

A provision for hand-held X-ray scanning machines has also been made in the state's new excise policy 2025-26. A trial of these scanners was conducted earlier, but the ones tested had some technical limitations. Now, the department is gearing to buy high-end scanners. The scanners that were put to trial earlier are the ones used by the Bihar government at the moment and come at a cost of around Rs 1 crore each. Now, the excise department is gearing to get state-of-the-art X-ray scanners that cost around Rs 20 crore each. They can scan vehicles more effectively and efficiently.