Rs 1.49 crore ganja seized from truck in Nagpur in interstate drug bust; 2 held

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The Nagpur police have unearthed an interstate drug smuggling network by seizing more than 150 kg of ganja valued at Rs 1.49 crore hidden beneath steel coils in a truck travelling from Odisha, officials said, reported PTI.

Two persons have been arrested in this connection, they said.

The police's Social Security Branch intercepted the truck near an eatery on the Outer Ring Road in Maharashtra's Nagpur city on Tuesday morning. During a detailed search, it recovered 150.52 kg of ganja concealed behind 21.26 tonnes of steel coils, a police official said, reported PTI.

"The gang used steel coils as a cover to avoid suspicion. The accused also switched off their mobile phones nearly 200 km before Nagpur to evade tracking," the official said.

"We had been monitoring the network for nearly two months. The consignment was headed to Mumbai, and efforts are underway to arrest the suppliers based in Odisha," another official said.

The arrested persons have been identified as Jogesh Dharmodhar Devuri (30) and Mahendra Irda Devuri (40), both residents of Odisha, the police said, adding that further investigation was underway, reported PTI.

DRI seizes 522 kg ganja worth Rs 2.61 cr, arrests two persons

In another case, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on June 5 said it had dismantled an inter-state drug trafficking syndicate by seizing 522 kilograms of ganja worth Rs 2.61 crore and arresting two persons in Nagpur district, reported PTI.

The two are involved in inter-state narcotics trafficking networks operating along the Odisha-Central India corridor and were supplying the contraband in Maharashtra, the agency said in a release.

"DRI officers intercepted a truck travelling from the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh border towards Maharashtra on National Highway-53 at the Mathni Toll Plaza, near Mouda . The search of the vehicle resulted in recovery of 8 HDPE bags containing 247 packages of cannabis (ganja), weighing 522 kg , individually wrapped in khaki-coloured plastic tape," it said, reported PTI.

The contraband, valued at Rs 2.61 crore, was found concealed in secret compartments in the vehicle, it added.

Two persons were arrested under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the DRI release informed.

(With inputs from PTI)