AP, Odisha Police Plan Joint Action Against Cross-Border Crime

Visakhapatnam: Senior cops from Andhra Pradesh and Odisha held an interstate coordination meeting via video conference on Tuesday with a view to checking crime in the border areas through joint efforts.

The meeting, led by DIG Gopinath Jatti of the Visakhapatnam range, addressed the challenges from ganja cultivation, illegal transportation of narcotic drugs and other cross-border crimes.

The Visakhapatnam range police presented compelling data showcasing their anti-narcotics success. In the ASR District alone, ganja cultivation has come down from 7,515 acres in 2021-22 to 93 acres in 2024-25 – a reduction of over 98 per cent, the cops claimed.

The police said they offered viable alternatives to ganja cultivation, distributing 4.68 million plants across 10,817 acres and 32,760 quintals of Rajma seeds to over 35,000 farmers in about 10,000 villages.

In 2023, police registered 553 cases, seized 32,261kg of ganja, arrested 1,764 accused individuals and confiscated 393 vehicles. The next year saw registration of 652 cases, seizure of 35,062kg ganja, 1,941 arrests and seizure of 483 vehicles.

This year, till now, police registered 377 cases, seized 22,207kg ganja, arrested 1,038 accused, and confiscated 244 vehicles. Financial investigations have scrutinized assets worth over `1 crore belonging to 13 accused individuals, while the Prevention of Detention Act was invoked against 51 individuals.

Provisions under the Prevention of illicit trafficking in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act were invoked against 80 offenders, with over 1,119 NDPS sheets opened to track such criminal activities.

The Sankalpam awareness campaign has emerged as a cornerstone of the anti-narcotics strategy, conducting nearly 16,000 events across 11,896 villages and towns. The initiative has reached over 900,000 people and engaged more than 300,000 students across 3,912 educational institutions.

During the meeting, both states committed themselves to enhanced coordination and seamless cooperation between border officers to effectively tackle cross-border crime. They also decided to intensify efforts to apprehend absconding accused and those with non-bailable warrants, who may have sought refuge elsewhere.

An official release said the two sides agreed to reorient check posts while conducting financial investigations to identify assets of accused individuals and disrupt criminal network funding.

In a bold decision, both states agreed to hold bimonthly coordination meetings, ensuring sustained focus on cross-border security challenges and regular progress reviews.