Munger: India's Counterfeit Cigarette Hub Thrives Amidst Price Hikes

• Munger, Bihar, a historic cigarette manufacturing center, has become a hub for counterfeit cigarette production and smuggling due to rising prices.
• Syndicates fill genuine empty cigarette packets with illegally manufactured cigarettes, distributing them across Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh.
• These counterfeit cigarettes are significantly cheaper, appealing to low-income smokers.
• DRI and Bihar Police are actively cracking down; seizures of counterfeit cigarettes and cash have reached crores of rupees.
• Upcoming excise duty hikes from February 1, 2026, are feared to further fuel the illegal trade, prompting increased police vigilance.

Why It Matters: Munger's illegal cigarette trade flourishes due to price hikes, posing a major challenge to law enforcement.