The cops also seized 76 red sander logs worth Rs 1.12 crore, 27 axes and 30 saws
Kadapa police arrested 72 Tamil Nadu wood cutters from a private tourist bus near the Chinna Mandem police station in Kadapa district on Friday.
Anantapur: In a major breakthrough, the Kadapa police arrested 72 Tamil Nadu wood cutters from a private tourist bus near the Chinna Mandem police station in Kadapa district on Friday. They were trying to enter the Sundupalle forest pretending to be tourists.
The cops also seized 76 red sander logs worth Rs 1.12 crore, 27 axes and 30 saws, a weighing machine and a packet of rice from the bus. Arunachalam, a Tamil Nadu-based smuggler engaged the labourers from Salem and Vilupuram districts of TN, hired a private bus and sent them as tourists. The bus was coming from Madanapalle in Chittor district to drop the labourers at the Sundupalle forests to cut red sander trees. Earlier, they had procured 1.5 tonnes of red sander logs and had dumped it in the bus.
Pulivendula ASP, Anbu Rajan had alerted the district police station and Rayachoti rural circle inspector S. Prabhakar and his team noticed the tourist bus on the main road near Chinna Mandem police station and tried to stop it at the check post, but the driver did not stop.
Later, the police detained the driver and noticed that the bus had no AP permit. After interrogation, the bus leader, Dora Anand, said they were smuggling red sanders. Four persons fled from the spot and a manhunt has been launched to nab Arunachalam. The ASP said they were thinking of sending a letter to the TN.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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