Is Odisha now the new spot for illegal gun manufacturing?

A day after the Special Task Force (STF) of Odisha Crime Branch busted an illegal gun manufacturing unit at Bayalis Mouza area in Cuttack, concerns are now being expressed whether Odisha has turned into a new spot for illegal firearms manufacturing?

It is a well-known fact that proliferation of illegal firearms has always remained a major concern as it poses serious threats to public safety and national security. Unlicensed weapons fuel criminal activities such as robberies, extortion, and gang violence, making law enforcement's job increasingly difficult.

The easy availability of country-made and smuggled guns empowers anti-social elements, leading to a rise in violent crimes and political unrest. In many regions, these weapons are linked to organized crime, insurgencies, and even communal clashes.

Coming to Odisha context, discovery of an illegal gun manufacturing unit in Odisha has raised serious law and order concerns.

What STF Seized:

The STF team seized more than 30 pistols from the post and arrested four persons in connection with the case on Thursday. The accused were identified as Md Azam alias Budhu from West Bengal, Md Abid Hussain and  Samir Alam from Munger in Bihar and Sarat Yadav, the house owner. 

The house owner was aware of the gun manufacturing workshop and he had set up a diary farm to clandestinely run the unit, informed STF DIG Pinak Mishra on Friday.

Also Read: Gun manufacturing unit busted in Cuttack; over 30 guns seized, 4 arrested

Criminal Antecedents 

Senior officials informed that one of the accused Budhu is a murder convict and another accused also has some criminal antecedents. They knew the skills of manufacturing illegal firearms by using conventional machines and they had set up a workshop. Whether the accused are associated with some particular gang or whether they were manufacturing from local supply is under investigation.

During probe it has been ascertained that the raw materials for manufacturing firearms were being procured from Cuttack and West Bengal.

Sources said that the gang used to sell the unfinished firearms at a price ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 and its prices rise to Rs 50,000 and above for the finished and final weapon. The total number of arms that were manufactured at the workshop and supplied to Odisha or outside is being probed, said STF officials.

Findings So Far

STF officials informed that the unit was busted with credible inputs from West Bengal STF. Here in Cuttack, unfinished firearms were manufactured and it is being verified whether those were sent to outside for final assembly or the gang was doing it here.

“We hope to bust the entire network. We are in touch with West Bengal STF and other states. Special teams have been formed for further investigation,” said Mishra.