Hyderabad: The AP police and forest departments are looking for top Red Sanders smugglers hailing from Kattigenahalli in Bangalore Rural district and Red Hills of Chennai.
Police said the gangs have links with national and international crime networks. In Karnataka, all the smugglers belong to Kattigenahalli in Hoskote Taluk of Bangalore Rural district and the attempts of the Special Task Force to nab the ring leaders have failed. Kattigenahalli is notorious for sandalwood thieves and now they have switched over to Red Sanders.
Shabuddin, Riyza, Izaz, Babu alias Malur Babu, Bakshu alias Syed Isaq, Nazeer, Moula, Anju, Muktiar Khan, Ramesh and Prem Kumar of Kattigenahalli are the most wanted smugglers.
A senior police official said, “it is very difficult to raid Kattigenahalli as the village keeps tabs on new people coming there.”
Police records say that Ramanadhan, Bala, L.V. Mani and Sedi, belonging to two families hailing from Red Hills in Chennai, are also on the wanted list. Some others come from Chennai.
A senior police official said, “All top smugglers hailing from Karnataka and TN are grade-1 or stage-1 smugglers and those from AP are second stage or grade-2 smugglers. Most of them were arrested by the STF to prevent smuggling. Reddy Narayana, G. Siva Prasad Naidu of Kadapa, A. Penchalaih, Subba Reddy, Rasool and S. Jaya Rao of Nellore are stage-2 operatives. They have been arrested.”
Police said that wood cutters belong to villages connected to Veerappan. Most of the contractors hail from Thirvunnamalai and Salem districts. Wood cutters come from Thrivullaur, Vellore, Krishnagiri, Thiruvannamalai, Kancheepuram, and Villupuram of TN and Nellore and Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh.
“These wood cutters are experts and after death of Veerappan in 2004 they were silent for few years. For the past five years they are coming to Andhra Pradesh and cutting the Red Sanders heavily. Several youngsters from the same villages have come into picture,” said a police official.
Meanwhile cost of Red Sanders have gone up to Rs 60 lakh per tonn in international market with the police and forest officials cracking whip and tightening the smugglers.
“The value of Red Sanders is Rs 30 lakh per metric tonn in Chennai and Bangalore but it’s cost is double in China, Japan and Dubai. This come around Rs 6000 per kg. Each coolie gets Rs 6000 per ten days whether they cut or not. Due to more restriction and coolie rate also increased,” said the official.
The wood cutters after cutting the red sanders under the guidance of labour contractors mostly from Tamilnadu bring them to a road point which will be a kilometer distance.
When the vehicles come they load Red sanders logs into vehicles. A pilot will be ahead of vehicles with Red Sanders to inform whether there are any police checks.
They will hand over to another smuggler who will take if further. In the second stage for transport people from AP are involved till they get out of the state borders.
When it reaches Chennai and Bangalore the smugglers on the top come into picture. Then the role of organized criminals come into picture who export them to China, Japan and United Arab Emirates through shipping or air.
Red sanders is stored in godowns or in farm houses in the Chennai suburbs. It is then smuggled to the Chennai port and then to China, Burma, UAE and Japan.
Red Sanders smugglers register a container stating that some goods are exported. After customs seal is given the containers are taken back to godowns and farm houses and without tampering the seal they open the container. After loading red sanders and container is closed and it pass through customs check at port.
Though smuggling was detected way back in 2009 there are no much efforts to curtail them.
