The Assam Police on Wednesday seized 594kg of cannabis from a speeding vehicle from Tripura that attempted to enter Assam by breaking the checkpoint at the state border but overturned after losing control. The smugglers managed to escape, the police said.
The incident took place at the Churaibari checkpoint where the police were checking vehicles entering from Tripura, headed for Uttar Pradesh.
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday evening shared the information on social media, and said, “Karimganj Police intercepted a vehicle coming from a neighbouring state at the Churaibari check post and seized 58 packets of Ganja, weighing 594kg, hidden in a secret chamber of the vehicle. Great work Assam Police.”
“Earlier, they (smugglers) used to transport cannabis in public transports with minimum security but now they are making secret chambers, like the drug peddlers do. We had to cut the secret chambers to recover the cannabis,” Karimganj superintendent of police Partha Pratim Das said.
According to Das, the strict actions taken by the Assam and Tripura governments against narcotics has created fear amongst the smugglers.
“Along with continuous efforts by the Assam government, Tripura has also tightened activities and as a result, smugglers are adopting new methods. But in most cases, we get information whenever they make any attempt,” he said, adding that the smugglers have been identified and a search is on to arrest them.
According to a senior Assam Police official, cannabis from Tripura is transported to states such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. “They get higher prices in those markets,” the official said.
