Odisha Police destroy over 2 acres of illegal Ganja cultivation

Local police destroyed illegal Ganja (cannabis) cultivation on Thursday after it was detected in Mankada Hatting forest area under Joda block of Keonjhar district. Acting on specific inputs, law enforcement teams traced the prohibited crop spread across more than two acres of forest land and immediately destroyed it.

Also Read: Over Rs 10 Lakh worth of Ganja plantation destroyed in Odisha’s Sundargarh

Officials suspect the involvement of an interstate drug trafficking network behind the large-scale Ganja cultivation. Following the operation, Barbil police have intensified their probe to identify those responsible and uncover possible links, if any, to organised narcotics rackets operating across the State borders.

Sources said efforts are underway to trace the cultivators and handlers involved in the illegal activity. Police have warned that strict action will be taken against anyone found connected to the banned cultivation as part of the ongoing crackdown on drug-related crimes in the region.

“We were tipped off by a reliable source that illegal Ganja cultivation was done on a vast patch of land near the Suna River in Mankada Hatting forest area under Joda block. Swinging into action, our team raided the spot and later destroyed the Ganja plantation spanning over an area of around two to three acres, in the presence of the local Magistrate,” Barbil SDPO, Debendra Nath Pingua, said.

Worth mentioning, earlier in another incident and in a major anti-narcotics operation, a joint team of local Excise, Forest, and police officials had destroyed over an acre of Ganja (cannabis) cultivation on November 11 last year in Sundargarh district, with an estimated market value of the plants exceeding Rs 10 lakh.

The massive operation had been carried out under the supervision of a magistrate in the villages such as Baraghat, Jhandisahi, Annasahi, and Ulasura of Bhalupani panchayat under Tikayatpali police limits.

Reported By: Sanjib Kumar Munda