Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Chakan, 3rd June 2026: The Anti-Property Crime Squad of the Pimpri-Chinchwad Police Crime Branch has dismantled an illegal and highly hazardous liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) refilling racket operating in Chakan.
The police seized 81 domestic LPG cylinders valued at тВ╣1,00,300 and apprehended two individuals, including a 31-year-old man and a juvenile.
The raid was conducted on Tuesday, June 2, at a commercial establishment operating under the name тАЬJay Ganesh Bharat Gas,тАЭ located opposite the Hanuman Temple on the Chakan-Mhalunge Road in Kharabwadi, Khed taluka.
According to police authorities, police constables Ganesh Sawant and Vinod Veer of the Anti-Property Crime Squad received a confidential tip-off regarding the illegal operations at the shop. Acting swiftly on this intelligence, a specialized team comprising Assistant Police Inspector Pandurang Devkate, Gorakshanath Balwadkar, Police Sub-Inspector Mahesh Khande, and several police personnel raided the establishment.
The main suspect, identified as Sachin Prakash Mhaskare (31), a resident of Kharabwadi, was caught red-handed. Mhaskare, along with a juvenile in conflict with the law, was illegally transferring gas from commercially filled domestic LPG cylinders into other cylinders using specialized transfer nozzles for commercial profit.
Investigators emphasized that the refilling was being conducted in an extremely negligent manner with complete disregard for public safety. Despite being fully aware of the highly volatile nature of LPG and the imminent risk of a catastrophic explosion, the operators took zero safety precautions, directly endangering the lives of residents in the surrounding commercial and residential areas.
A formal First Information Report (FIR) has been registered at the Mhalunge MIDC Police Station (Crime Register No. 479/2026). The suspects have been booked under:
Sections 287 and 288 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) (pertaining to negligent conduct involving fire, combustible matter, and explosive substances).
Sections 3 and 7 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.
Section 5 of the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.
The Mhalunge MIDC Police have taken over the custody of the seized material and are conducting further investigations into the procurement and distribution network of the racket.
The operation was carried out under the direct supervision of top brass, including Pimpri-Chinchwad Police Commissioner Vinay Kumar Choubey, Joint Commissioner Shashikant Mahavarkar, Additional Commissioner Sarang Awad, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rohidas Pawar, and Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime 1) Dr. Vishal Hire.
The executing team was led by Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Chavan, alongside API Pandurang Devkate, Gorakshanath Balwadkar, PSI Mahesh Khande, and police personnel Nitin Lokhande, Ganesh Kokane, Vishal Gaikwad, Vinod Veer, Ganesh Sawant, Amar Kadam, and Ganesh Hinge.
The post Pune: Illegal Gas Refilling Business Busted in Chakan; 81 Cylinders Seized, One Arrested appeared first on Punekar News.
