Hyderabad: A youth from Odisha has been arrested from Hyderabad in Telangana for allegedly smuggling Ganja (Cannabis/Marijuana) from his home state and supplying it to construction workers. Babhuti Bhushan Palai, originally from the Ganjam district of Odisha, was arrested by the Hyderabad Narcotics Enforcement Wing (HNEW) for supplying the narcotics to workers in both Hyderabad and Secunderabad.
“The accused came to Hyderabad in 2007 in order to earn his livelihood. Initially, he used to work as a labourer at construction sites and later took up a job as a food delivery boy to earn some extra money. Eventually, he became a crane driver at a construction site,” YVS Sudeendra, DCP, Task Force, Hyderabad Police, told the media.
Babhuti apparently spotted several workers at the site consuming Ganja. This was when he got the idea of getting the drug from Ganjam and distributing it among the labourers. He started purchasing Ganja from one Rahul – a supplier from Ganjam – at Rs 5,000 a kg. He then packed the material in small pouches of 100-250 grams and sold them to the construction workers. He also sold the Ganja in bulk to certain customers and started enjoying a lavish lifestyle.
It was his sudden change in lifestyle that is likely to have caught the attention of police informers. They informed the HNEW, which carried out a raid with the Tukaram Gate police and arrested him. Nearly 10.30 kg of Ganja was seized from him along with a motorcycle, a mobile phone and Rs 1,210 in cash. The drug haul is valued at Rs 4.48 crore in the illicit market. The HNEW is trying to trace Rahul.
A few days ago, the excise department of Odisha had seized 384 kgs of Ganja from the Gajapati district. This Ganja was being taken to Mumbai, investigations revealed.
