Paralakhemundi: In a major anti-narcotics operation, police have seized 2811 kg of ganja from a hilltop near Karigiju village under Adava police limits in Odisha’s Gajapati district .
Acting on a tip-off, 10 police teams from Adava and Ramagiri led by R Udayagiri SDPO Rakesh Kumar Sahu carried out combing operations in the village on Monday afternoon and later, found the contraband from a nearby hilltop concealed in 113 sacks, hidden away from residential areas. The estimated value of the seized ganja is around Rs 3 crore.
Speaking to the media, Sahu elaborated how those involved in smuggling ganja had changed their modus operandi due to frequent raids. “Due to constant raids, the accused have devised a new plan to hide the ganja at forests, hills and other locations in close proximity, instead of their houses. They have constructed dumps to store the ganja, from where they intended to smuggle it to nearby states,” he said.
Further investigation is underway to ascertain possible links between the local smugglers and inter-state drug networks. No arrests have so far been made in this specific operation.
This seizure comes amid a sustained crackdown on ganja trafficking in the region. In March, Gajapati police had seized over 4,060 kg of ganja valued at around Rs 4 crore from Keshariguda village under the same Adava police limits, in one of the larger recent hauls in the district.
