Bhubaneswar: A day after a special investigation by the OTV on the rampant sale of brown sugar in a slum in the capital city, the commissionerate police is on the hunt for the drug peddlers.
Talking to OTV today, Bhubaneswar DCP Satyabrata Bhoi said the Quick Action Team (QAT) has already taken up the case. “We have formed a special squad who are on the hunt for those who are in this business. We have conducted raids on Haladi Padia slum and several places in the city earlier and arrested some drug peddlers. The raids are still on and will continue in regular intervals,” he added.
The DCP also said efforts are on to trace the whereabouts of the woman of Haladi Padia slum and her family members who have absconded following the sting operation by the OTV team yesterday.
He further said that the police, in course of investigation, has come to know that the sources of supply of brown sugar to Odisha are from Pakistan, Myanmar and Bangladesh while Jaleswar in Balasore district is the den for the drug peddlers from where the brown sugar is supplied to Bhubaneswar.
“We have prepared a list of drug peddlers on the basis of the information provided by their fellow partners who are lodged in the jail,” the DCP informed.
Talking to media persons, local BJP leader Jagannath Pradhan said though the name of nine drug peddlers of Haladi Padia slum was made public and given to the IIC of Laxmisagar police station, police is yet to take action against them.
Meanwhile, students of a private engineering college in Khandagiri area of the city came to the street in the city today protesting the inaction of the police in taking stern action against the drug peddlers.
“If the police takes action against the drug peddlers who are opening selling narcotics in the city, the incidence can be curbed to a large extent. I think the police is not taking the steps it should take and as a result, such illegal activities are taking place,” he noted.
Notably, an engineering student of a private college in Khandagiri area had died recently after consuming brown sugar.