Bhavnagar, Gujarat — Gujarat police have widened the investigation into the methanol‑tainted liquor tragedy that killed 13 people in Bhavnagar district, reporting a major seizure at a makeshift factory in Adipur, Kutch. Authorities said the raid yielded nearly 9,400 empty bottles, 600 filled bottles and 600 litres of chemicals believed to be linked to production of spurious liquor bearing the label of a popular Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) brand.
Operation details and arrests
Inspector General of Police, Border Range, Chirag Koradiya is reported to have briefed media about the Kutch action, saying the haul included bottles and raw material used to adulterate or produce illegal liquor. Two persons were detained in connection with the seizure, which followed the ongoing probe into the Bhavnagar deaths.
"Around 9,400 empty bottles and 600 filled with 180 ml liquor were seized along with 600 litres of chemicals from a makeshift factory at Adipur in the district," said Chirag Koradiya, Inspector General of Police, Border Range, as reported.
The Kutch raid broadens the scope of a multi-district probe being driven by the Gujarat Police's State Monitoring Cell. That special unit has been tracing supply chains for illicit liquor and related raw materials, following the detection of methanol‑contaminated bottles that led to widespread poisoning in Bhavnagar.
Link to Bhavnagar tragedy and ongoing probe
Police in Bhavnagar earlier registered numerous arrests in connection with the incident; the source reported that so far 27 persons have been apprehended in relation to the Bhavnagar case. Investigators are working to establish the origin of the methanol, the movement of chemicals, and the transport network used to supply adulterated liquor across districts.
- Seizure location: Adipur, Kutch.
- Material recovered: ~9,400 empty bottles; 600 bottles filled with 180 ml each; 600 litres of chemicals.
- Detentions reported: Two persons at the Adipur factory; 27 arrests connected to the Bhavnagar deaths overall, as reported.
Gujarat remains a dry state where manufacture, sale and consumption of alcohol is prohibited; nonetheless, illicit production and distribution have periodically surfaced, often organised through makeshift units and covert supply lines. The State Monitoring Cell, which coordinates tracking of illegal liquor and gambling networks, has led the effort to map how methanol and other adulterants travelled across districts into Bhavnagar.
Public-health and enforcement implications for Bhavnagar
The Kutch discovery has direct consequences for law enforcement and public health authorities in Bhavnagar. Officials in the district must now intensify coordination with border and coastal ranges to stem further inflows of adulterated product and identify distributors who brought contaminated bottles into the district market.
Hospitals and the district administration in Bhavnagar will also continue post‑incident actions, including tracking survivors, treating methanol poisoning cases, and conducting public-awareness drives to warn residents about the risks of illicit liquor. The mortality reported in Bhavnagar has already focused attention on forensic testing of seized bottles and chemicals to match composition and supply routes.
| Item | Quantity (reported) |
|---|---|
| Empty bottles | 9,400 |
| Filled bottles (180 ml) | 600 |
| Chemicals (litres) | 600 |
| Detained at Adipur | 2 |
Investigators will focus on forensic analysis of the seized liquids and labels to determine whether the same brand‑labelled bottles were the ones consumed in Bhavnagar, and whether the methanol source can be traced to procurement channels used by the Kutch unit. The probe also aims to identify transporters and middlemen who move forbidden products across district lines in Gujarat.
For Bhavnagar residents, the unfolding inquiry underlines persistent public‑safety risks from clandestine manufacturing and distribution. Authorities have emphasised continued vigilance and promised stringent action as the investigation proceeds across districts.
Reporting for this dispatch is based on accounts and figures provided to media by Gujarat police and the India Today report on the Kutch seizure.
