Andhra Pradesh Minister for Excise and Prohibition Mr Mopidevi Venkata Ramana Rao today informed the State Legislative Council that the government will impose Preventive Detention (PD) Act against those who responsible for illicit liquor deaths. He told Mr Jalli Wilson, P J Chandrasekhara Rao and Dadi Veerabhadra Rao (TDP) during Question Hour that 19 persons, belonging to Mylavaram and Reddygudem mandals of Krishna District, had died on December 31 last year due to consumption of illicit liquor containing methyl alcohol while two persons died in Kodavali village of Gollaprolu Mandal of East Godavari district in January this year due to consumption of toddy laced with pesticide.
The government had been taking all necessary measures to prevent illicit liquor and the government was planning to allocate Rs 50 crore on anti-liquor campaign to educate the people, he informed. The persons concerned, including lab owner in Vijayawada from where methyl was purchased by the illicit liquor owner in Mylavaram incident were arrested and all of them were presently lodged in jail, the Minister said. Frequent inspections of methanol units were being conducted by the field officers to prevent misuse and pilferage of methanol, he said and added that raids and inspections were being conducted frequently on the centres of illicit distillation and toddy shops. As an special case an ex-gratia of Rs two lakh each was given to the kin of the victims of Mylavaram liquor tragedy, he added. UNI