Odisha police officer among two held with cannabis worth Rs 2 lakh in Chhattisgarh

An officer of the Odisha police and a truck driver have been arrested for alleged possession of cannabis worth Rs 2 lakh in Chhattisgarh's Durg district, police said on Monday.

Based on a tip-off, a police team intercepted a truck on the Kumhari-Ahiwara Road under the Kumhari police station limits on Sunday and found 20 kg of the contraband hidden in the driver's cabin, an official said.

Assistant sub-inspector Ravindra Bhukta (50) and truck driver Gagan Anand Mehar (42), both hailing from Cuttack in Odisha, were taken into custody, he said.

The duo told the police they had brought the consignment from Odisha to Bhilai city for sale, he said, adding that the vehicle and mobile phones were seized from the accused.

A case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act has been registered, and a probe is underway to unearth an inter-state drug racket, the official said.