Ganja worth ₹88 lakh seized, two held

Police arrested two persons from Tamil Nadu and seized ganja worth ₹88.70 lakh from a Madurai-bound truck at Tangutur in Prakasam district.

Superintendent of Police B.Satya Yesu Babu told a media conference here on Friday that on a tip off the vehicle was intercepted on the Chennai-Kolkata highway near the Tangutur toll plaza late on Thursday by a night patrolling party.

The contraband weighing 443 kg was found concealed in a secret chamber near the driver’s cabin, the SP said. The truck used for transporting ganja was also seized.

Special team formed

A special team was formed to nab others involved in the transportation of the illicit drug from Anakapalli in Visakhapatnam, he said.

The arrested, identified as V.Devendran(50) from Pudhupatti and Thangamalai Manirajan(40) from Hanumanthampatti, both in Uthamapalayam Taluk.

The accused revealed that they used to source the contraband from villages in Visakhapatnam district and supply to ganja peddlers in and around Madurai, the SP said. The preliminary probe showed that the ganja peddlers from Theni district create secret chambers on trucks and transport the narcotic substance along with coffee and other commodities, the SP added.