Baripada: Poppy plants worth Rs 3 crore have been detected and destroyed following a raid by police inside Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district amid clear indications that the wildlife sanctuary is emerging as a hub for drug mafia.
Sources said the plants cultivated over a vast area were traced at Phulabadi and Jojaguda villages under the jurisdiction of Jashipur police station.
Acting on a specific information, a joint team comprising officials of police, excise and forest carried out an operation in the areas and destroyed the illegally cultivated poppy plants.
Though the plantations were destroyed, no one has so far been arrested by the authorities in connection with the illegal activities in the area.
Similar incidents of illegal poppy cultivation had been reported from the core and buffer areas of STR earlier also.
As per reports, a raid was conducted by a joint squad on opium plantations at Bakua and Kukurabhuka on March 10, and over 5.25 lakh plants of opium poppy were destroyed. The plants were valued at around Rs 10.66 crore.
The team also destroyed 3.85 lakh plants worth over Rs 7.70 crore at Jenabil, Khejuri, and Jajagada under the Jashipur range on the same day.
