LPG Racket Busted In Hyderabad, 10 Arrested And Over 400 Cylinders Seized

At least 10 persons were arrested for allegedly running an illegal gas cylinder business in Banjara Hills, Hyderabad, police said. They also seized 414 cylinders and 10 transport vehicles, valued at Rs 21.88 lakh.

Acting on a tip-off, the Jubilee Hills Zone Task Force conducted a raid on Sunday and caught the accused while they were allegedly storing and selling gas cylinders at prices much higher than the government-approved rates, the police said. 

The seizure comprised 30 commercial 47-kg cylinders, 148 19-kg cylinders, 35 5-kg cylinders, along with 192 empty 19-kg cylinders and nine empty 5-kg cylinders.

The vehicles seized include two DCM vans, two Bolero vehicles, a Tata Ace, a Tata Intra, a Tata Magic and four autos.

According to police, the main accused, Mohammad Aamir, 42, was operating an agency under the name "Metro Gas Agency" in Shamshabad. He was illegally shifting cylinders from the agency and storing them at a graveyard near Nagarjuna X Road with the help of workers and drivers, they said. 

From there, the cylinders were allegedly supplied to customers in different parts of the city at inflated prices. Police said the accused took advantage of people who urgently needed gas cylinders and sold them at rates much higher than the official price.

The other accused include gas delivery workers, drivers, labourers and the person who allegedly rented out the land for storing the cylinders.

Deputy Commissioner of Police, Gaikwad Vaibhav Raghunath said the racket had been operating in violation of safety rules and LPG distribution norms.

"We received credible information that gas cylinders were being dumped and sold illegally. During the raid, we found a large number of cylinders stored at the site. The accused were selling them at high prices and earning illegal profits," the DCP said.

He added, "Illegal storage of LPG cylinders is dangerous and can lead to major accidents. We appeal to people not to buy cylinders from unauthorised sellers and to inform police if they notice such activities."