3 UP youth questioned in Kashmir stone pelting case
Lucknow, June 21: Three youth have been detained and are being questioned in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh for their alleged complicity in stone-pelting in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar district, police said on Thursday.
The police has constituted a team of the local intelligence unit (LIU) to probe their background and to question their families, an official said.
The youngsters told the police that they were taken to Pulwama district in Kashmir for employment at a stitching factory by a contractor.
The police suspects the contractor coerced them into stone-pelting during search operations by the Indian Army and security forces.
The youngsters hail from Nuka and Nanauta areas while there are other suspects believed to be from Baghpat district.
The families of the detained youth told the police that their children had gone to Kashmir for a contractual job at a stitching factory but they returned, complaining of being coerced into stone-pelting.
Saharanpur District Magistrate Alok Pandey told IANS that the issue was being probed and all aspects were being verified.
Superintendent of Police of Saharanpur Jai Prakash said the youth were changing their statements frequently. "Hence the police and LIU are trying to corroborate the information provided by them."
The police is also on the lookout for the contractor who took these youth to the Valley.
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Liquor manufactures can sell liquor on tetra packs in Odisha: Minister
Bhubaneswar (PTI): Odisha Excise Minister Prithviraj Harichandan on Friday said the government has allowed the sale of liquor on tetra packets with certain criteria in its new Excise Policy for 2026-29.
Speaking to media persons here, Harichandan said selling liquor in tetra packs was there in the state's excise policy since 2014. However, it is not yet made available in the Odisha market, he said.
"If any licensed liquor manufacturer or vendor wants to produce or sell the liquor on tetra pack, they can do it. The government will not restrict them," he clarified.
The state government is giving priority for proper regulation of manufacturing and selling of liquor in the state, the minister added.
"We just ensure that there is no illegal sale of liquor in the state," he stated.
As per the new Excise Policy, which came into force from April 1, India-made foreign liquor (IMFL) manufacturers can supply their products in tetra packaging and in glass bottles in specified sizes. Only 180 ml can be supplied in tetra packs.
The tetra packs must have six protective layers and must have the shelf life or the date fit for consumption clearly mentioned on the packaging, the policy guidelines said.
Before using the tetra packs for packaging of liquor, the manufacturing units must take certification from the Central Food Technology Research Institute or Indian Institute of Packaging, or any such institute as notified by the excise commissioner, it said.
Earlier, opposition leaders had demanded the rollback of the government's decision to introduce the sale of liquor in tetra packs, calling the move "unethical" and "anti-youth".
