Balangir: Odisha Police and the Excise Department seized 51 kg of ganja and arrested two persons from a mini bus during a joint raid at Naikensira Square in Deogaon tehsil in Odisha’s Balangir district.
Those arrested have been identified as Sandeep Kumar and Arvind Kumar, both natives of Uttar Pradesh. They were allegedly transporting the ganja, valued at around Rs 5 lakh, from Kantamal area in Boudh district to Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.
Acting on specific intelligence about ganja smuggling, police alerted the Excise department. A joint team by Excise Inspector Srikant Panigrahi was formed, which chased and intercepted the mini bus at Naikensira Square. Subsequent search in the presence of Additional Tehsildar Dibyajyoti Parida led to recovery of three sacks containing 51 kg of ganja, a police officer said.
A fake Bhubaneswar number plate was used by the accused on the UP-registered mini bus to avoid detection while passing through Odisha, she added.
Further investigation is underway to identify additional associates and links to inter-state drug smuggling syndicate.