In the perspective of the great famine in the year of 1943, the plight of the people touched a nadir and it was considered a necessity to combat the menace of acute shortage of food grains and other essential commodities aggravated by hoarding and black-marketing of those commodities by unholy businessmen with some strict executive actions. 'Hoarding and Profiteering Prevention Ordinance, 1943" was promulgated for the purpose.

The need for a specialized branch or unit for implementing the Ordinance along with other penal measures was felt, facilitating the creation of the Enforcement Branch in 1944. Vide G.O.No. 770-PL dated 11.03.44 a special branch of Police styled as Enforcement Branch was created and was ordained to function under the D.I.G, CID. It was then addressed as the Enforcement Branch Criminal Investigation Department.

Thereafter, in 1945 this branch was put under its own DIG. vide G.O.No.3944-PL. dated 18.12.1945. This Organization was to function for collecting information and detecting offences against all laws and Government orders relating to food and other controlled commodities" and also "for investigating charges of corruption or dishonesty in the supplies organization". Though the organization was created as a temporary measure, this was made permanent in in 1959 following the exigencies of the extant situations.

The Enforcement Branch is divided into two parts:-

(1) Central Enforcement Branch (E.B.) and

(2) District Enforcement Branches (DEBs)