Telangana’s Prohibition and Excise Department has stepped up enforcement against ganja, drugs and duty-free liquor as part of its 99-day “progress plan” to prevent illegal substances from entering the state.
As part of this initiative, special enforcement teams have been formed to conduct raids in Telangana. The teams include the enforcement department’s four Special Task Force (STF) units, enforcement teams and district-level task force teams that have been tasked with conducting surveillance and raids. Officials said the operations were aimed at curbing the sale of illegal substances and preventing revenue losses caused by non-duty paid alcohol.
The authorities have also identified several places in and around Hyderabad as hotspots where surveillance and raids will be intensified. These include Dhoolpet, Narayanguda, Fatehnagar, Sitaphalmandi, Neredmet, Serilingampally, Kukatpally, Moosapet, Dilsukhnagar, LB Nagar, Uppal, Nagole, Annojiguda and Muguru slums. In addition, controls on the movement of illegal substances are being increased at railway stations and checkpoints.
Officials said duty-free liquor is being transported to Telangana in significant quantities from Delhi, Noida, Goa and Haryana. Special drives are conducted to detect such shipments that come through airports, trains and roads. In Hyderabad, checks carried out at Shamshabad, Saroornagar and Meerpet consumption stations led to the seizure of 335 liters of liquor in 43 cases during a two-month period in 2025. In the same year, 3,631 liters of liquor were seized in 337 cases at these three stations. In Telangana, 16,103 liters of liquor were seized in 1,251 cases.
Enforcement teams seized 565 kg of ganja in raids conducted during 2025, while special forces teams seized 1,346 kg of contraband during the same period. In Khammam district alone, 185 kg of ganja was seized in 23 cases in two months.
Officials said substances such as OG Kush, MDMA, hashish oil and cannabis chocolates were also seized along with the ganja. In addition, 686 cannabis plants were seized during the raids.
Published – 9 March 2026 20:08 IST
