Enforcement authorities from the Special Investigation Branch (SIB), Range-D of the Commercial Tax Department have uncovered an illicit pan masala packaging operation in the Ispat Nagar area of Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The first floor of the commercial building had been rented under the official pretense of manufacturing gulal and incense sticks, but was instead being utilized to package counterfeit pan masala. During the surprise raid, officials discovered substantial quantities of packaging material bearing the labels of two reputed brands, raw ingredients, and a vertical pouch packing machine. The unit operator, identified as Rithik Agarwal, managed to flee the premises while the operation was underway.
Senior Tax Officials Supervise Joint Enforcement Action
The enforcement raid in Ispat Nagar was spearheaded by senior officials, including Additional Commissioner Sanya Chhabra, Kumar Anand, and Joint Commissioner Sushil Gautam. The inspection team seized all on-site machinery, raw inputs, and branded packaging supplies discovered inside the facility. To determine the extent of tax evasion and pursue further statutory proceedings, the seized vertical pouch packaging machine and associated materials have been officially transferred to the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) department.
Operator Faces Multiple Cases as Investigations Deepen
Departmental inquiries have revealed that the absconding operator, Rithik Agarwal, already has a criminal background related to similar illicit trade activities. A formal First Information Report (FIR) had previously been registered against him at the Bidhnoo police station. Regulatory agencies are now expanding the scope of their investigation to identify the supply chain, potential accomplices, and distribution routes connected to the illegal Ispat Nagar facility while active efforts continue to apprehend the runaway operator.
Crackdown on Illicit Networks Across Kanpur
This enforcement action follows a string of targeted operations against unauthorized operations and smuggling networks in Kanpur. In an earlier raid within the Babupurwa police station limits, the Anti Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) uncovered a major consignment of narcotic syrup stashed inside a residential godown. That operation resulted in the seizure of 25,000 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup valued at an estimated 2 crore 95 lakh rupees. The ANTF arrested Mihir Kumar Thakur, a resident of Madhubani in Bihar, who allegedly procured the pharmaceutical consignments using counterfeit documentation and transport receipts under the name of a New Delhi firm before distributing them to Varanasi, Prayagraj, and neighboring districts.
