Agra: In 10 major crackdowns on illegal arms factories in three districts of Agra zone, police have seized 200 country-made pistols and apprehended 15 men in over three-and-half months.Etah district police busted 18 such factories, the highest number in the three districts, from March to June 18. According to police, the seized weapons are cumulatively worth Rs 10 lakh.According to police records, on June 17, Nayagaon police of Etah busted an illegal arms factory near Kali river bed close to Thakpura and seized 10 country-made pistols. One person was arrested. On June 14, Jasrathpur police of Etah busted a factory in Bhojpur village, seized 12 country-made weapons and arrested two men. On June 13 Dehat Kotwali police of Etah busted a factory and seized 14 country-made pistols and arrested two men. On May 10, Jalesar police of Etah seized 14 country-made pistols from an arms smuggler after an encounter. One person was arrested.On April 10, Kasganj police busted an illegal arms factory and seized 54 country-made weapons after a raid conducted in Sadikpur village under Sahawar police jurisdiction. Two men were arrested. On April 6, special task force seized 36 country-made weapons from Saraigadi area of Aligarh from two men, who were running an illegal arms factory. On March 29, 19 country-made pistols were seized from Nagla Mangli village under Jaithra police jurisdiction of Etah. One person was arrested. On March 23, Etah police busted an illegal arms factory in Fatehpur Jhansi village under Aliganj police jurisdiction and seized 11 country-made weapons. One man was nabbed. On March 16, Jalesar police of Etah arrested a man with 18 pistols and three rifles. On March 14, local police of Etah busted an illegal fire arms factory in Kotwali Nagar area and arrested two men with 11 pistols and a shotgun.Senior police officers said that districts like Etah, Kasganj, Firozabad and Aligarh have earlier been hubs for country-made pistols and the demand for these weapons rises as the date of elections comes closer. “A country-made pistol is sold for merely Rs 4,000 apiece while a shotgun or rifle made from iron pipes costs around Rs 7,000. Ahead of assembly elections of 2017, district police in Firozabad, Etah and Kasganj cracked down on illegal weapons and now the focus is to completely remove such illegal factories before the 2019 general elections,” said a senior police officer on condition of anonymity.Additional director general of police, Agra zone, Ajay Anand said, “Our teams are not only busting illegal factories, they are also pinning down raw material providers, end users or purchasers. By the end of the year, we expect to clean up the entire Agra zone and ensure that not a single illegal arms factory or unit is operational.”

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