11 October,2023 05:32 PM IST | Guwahati | mid-day online correspondent
Pic/X
As many as five people have been arrested in Assam after nearly 2,650 kg of ganja was seized allegedly from their possession in two separate operations, the police said on Wednesday, according to the PTI.
Acting on a tip-off, the Guwahati Police intercepted an oil tanker coming from Meghalaya on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday and seized 2,640 kg of the contraband, one of the largest recoveries of the narcotics substance in recent times, a senior officer told the PTI.
"A total of 2,640 kg of ganja in 134 packets was found inside the oil tanker. The contraband was hidden in secret chambers," Guwahati Police Commissioner Diganta Barah said.
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The police arrested two traffickers from the spot and necessary legal action has been initiated, he said.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also lauded the efforts of the police for the contraband seizure.
In another operation, 8.8 kg of ganja was seized in Karimganj town in Barak valley and three persons were apprehended in this connection.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, the state police said they are immensely grateful to the chief minister for "his continued guidance and leadership in our relentless battle against drug trafficking".
"We strive for a safer and drug-free Assam," it added.
Meanwhile, two suspects wanted in a narcotics case were apprehended by the Pune police in a joint operation with the Special Task Force (STF) of Uttar Pradesh from near Nepal border in the northern state on Tuesday, an official said.
According to the police, one of the suspects is Bhushan Patel, brother of Lalit Patil, a Yerawada Jail inmate who last week fled from government-run Sassoon General Hospital, where he was undergoing treatment, the PTI reported.
The second suspect who was nabbed was identified by the police as Abhishek Balkawade. On September 30, the city police had arrested a man from outside Sassoon General Hospital with mephedrone worth Rs 2 crore. A probe led to the arrest of a hospital canteen staffer who revealed the contraband was supplied by Lalit Patil, a Yerwada Jail inmate admitted in the hospital at the time, according to the PTI.
(with PTI inputs)
