627 Ganja Plants Worth Rs 62 Lakh Seized In Adilabad

Adilabad SP Akhil Mahajan said that CCS teams and Ichoda Circle police launched a joint raid on Thursday after receiving credible information. "The plants each measuring about 2–3 feet were being cultivated in the farmland owned by a father and his two sons. The police arrested the main accused identified as Marsukola Devara Rao, 55, while his two sons Jagan and Nagesh managed to escape. Cases under the NDPS Act were registered with Gudihatnur police station. A special team has been formed to trace the absconding accused."

Talking to the Deccan Chronicle, Mahajan said, "Majority of the population in Adilabad is tribal where they have a tradition of consuming ganja but the accused were growing in larger quantities suggesting further sale of cannabis. The father and son are also suspected to be consumers; it is a first case registered against them. They were growing in their cotton farmland, with both the cotton and cannabis of the same height, they were taking advantage. We will work on the call data records if it leads to any buyers and further action will be taken. Meanwhile, the accused father was also sent to judicial remand."

Mahajan stated that that the accused resorted to ganja cultivation out of greed for easy money even while there were repeated awareness drives warning against drug-related activities. He pressed that such offenders will be denied access to government schemes as a deterrent. “Cultivating ganja is not only illegal but also dangerous for the youth and society. We will act sternly against anyone involved in cultivation, sale, transport, or consumption and the offences attract serious charges,” he said.

The officer highlighted that the information providers will receive rewards by maintaining anonymity and the SP urged citizens to report drug-related activities through WhatsApp at 8712659973.