Crackers, Explosives Worth Rs 50 Lakh Seized In Odisha, 12 Arrested

Cuttack: In a major crackdown on illegal firecracker manufacturing units ahead of Diwali, police seized huge cache of explosives and crackers worth lakhs from Trilochanpur and Mahajanpur villages under Jagatpur police limits in Cuttack.

Acting on a tip-off, a team comprising 20 senior police officials and four platoons of police forces carried out the raids at the cracker manufacturing units late last night. The team was led by ACP (zone 1) Manas Ranjan Gadanayak.

During the raids, police seized huge cache of firecrackers and explosive raw materials like gun powder, iron dust and potassium nitrate worth around Rs 50 lakh from the illegal units and subsequently nabbed 12 persons.

While it is being said that the firecrackers were supplied to Cuttack and its periphery areas, an investigation is underway to ascertain from where the explosives and other raw materials were being procured.