Police have unearthed an illegal racket selling spurious engine oil at Jagatpur. Preliminary investigations have also led to the seizure of huge quantity of spurious engine oil.

The clandestine duplicating process thrived in a makeshift unit near the Jagatpur industrial estate.

The police have arrested Babaji Sahoo, 45, of Jagatpur, who was running the unit manufacturing spurious engine oil of popular brands such as Castrol, Gulf, Servo, Veedol, Elf, Hero and Gulf.

The police had received information about production of spurious engine oil of popular brands near the industrial estate in Jagatpur police station limits.

“A team of the Jagatpur police conducted raids on the unit on Sunday and found evidence of spurious engine oil being prepared using colour, essence and chemicals,” deputy commissioner of police Akhileswar Singh said.

During the raid, the police seized 23,000 litres of spurious engine oil, along with huge quantity of chemicals, essence, colour, plastic containers and jar of various sizes branded with labels of various top companies.

Sahoo has been arrested and booked under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Trade and Mercantile Act. A police officer said that further investigation was on.

The police said investigations indicated that the accused used to allegedly prepare spurious engine oil adding automobile lubricants to essence. He then used to sell it in the market under the garb of popular brands.

Sahoo sold the engine oil as a genuine product at original price. But the product he used to prepare cost him 15 per cent of the original price.

“He has been selling illegal engine oil for several months,” a police officer said.

The duplicate engine oil of popular brands used to be sold through several outlets at Barang, Choudwar, Manguli and Jagatpur.

Jagatpur had been in the news in the past six months after cops traced a fake cement manufacturing unit and a factory engaged in preparing adulterated edible oil and ghee.