Odisha police have made a seizure of cannabis worth Rs 20 lakh in Malkangiri district and arrested three suspected drug peddlers, said a senior police official on Thursday.
An auto-rickshaw was intercepted at tunnel camp on the Balimela road under Chitrakonda police station area in Malkangiri district and 203.5 kilograms of cannabis locally called ganja was seized. The contraband was being smuggled to neighbouring Andhra Pradesh; police said adding that the drug peddlers were arrested under NDPS act provisions.
Since the past one month, the Malkangiri police have seized ganja haul of more than 9,500 kilograms which are valued at around Rs 9.5 crore.
The cannabis routed through Odisha by organized drug syndicates is much in demand in other States because its price is on the lower side. These banned substances are mostly being smuggled to northern parts of the country including New Delhi, said Sub Divisional Police Officer, Anshuman Dwivedi.