Khunti cops launch drive against poppy cultivation

Ranchi: Even as the sowing season for poppy plant is under way, the Khunti police launched an awareness drive to prevent people from illegally cultivating the crop.
The cultivation of poppy which is used for producing opium, is banned in Jharkhand but several districts, including Chatra, Latehar, Palamu, Khunti and Ranchi, witnesses large-scale farming of the crop. The crop is mainly grown in extremist-affected areas where the police movement is limited.
The drive was held at Kitahatu village under Saiko police station limits besides Kurumbadih, Gatigadha and other villages under Marangdah police station limits. The police officers also hold meetings with the villagers.
Khunti SP Aman Kumar said, “The drive is being conducted mainly in areas under the Marangdaha, Saiko and Arki police station limits, where poppy was cultivated extensively last season. Police teams are informing people about penal provisions and citing cases of arrests and seizures in this regard.”