Illegal cannabis cultivation worth Rs 9 Cr destroyed inside Odisha’s wildlife sanctuary

In yet another crackdown on illegal ganja (cannabis) cultivation in Odisha, a joint team of police, excise, and forest department officials destroyed unauthorized plantations in the Gajapati district on Monday.

The raid took place after reliable intelligence provided a tip-off about cannabis being grown inside the Lakhari valley wildlife sanctuary. Subsequently, a task force raided the area near the Mahulmelani and Guburiguda villages under the Manikapur Panchayat of Mohana police station.

The operation was carried out under the directives of the Gajapati SP and resulted in the complete destruction of 45 acres of cannabis cultivation by burning it down.

“The task force acted on the provided inputs and completely destroyed about 45 acres of land being used for cannabis cultivation. The total worth of the illegal crops is estimated to be at least Rs 9 crore,” informed Soumya Ranjan Baral, sub-inspector of Mohana police station.

ALSO READ: Green Clean Mission: 42 acres of ganja cultivation worth Rs 8 crore destroyed in Odisha's Gajapati

The continued action came on the recently intensified ‘Green Clean Mission’ of the Odisha government which aims to eliminate cannabis cultivation by 2026. Under the mission, crores worth of illegal crops have been destroyed in the districts of Gajapati, Ganjam, Deogarh, and Subarnapur within the last thirty days alone.

Recent ‘Green Clean Mission’ Drives

Earlier in November, the Special Task Force (STF) seized over 1000 kg of ganja during a raid in a stockyard in the Riamal area of Deogarh district and as many as four peddlers were arrested and three vehicles were seized.

On November 25, an enforcement team landed and destroyed ganja cultivation on more than 10 acres of land in Digapahandi area of Ganjam district today along with 62 acres of forest land in Subarnapur district.

ALSO READ: 'Green Clean Mission': 3500 kg ganja seized, 80 persons arrested so far in Odisha

Later on, a joint team of police and the Excise department landed on cannabis cultivation areas inside the forests of Gajapati district and destroyed 87 acres of land in the Raipanka panchayat region under Adaba police station limits, containing cannabis crops worth more than Rs 17 crore.