Alleged surge in ganja smuggling attributed to cannabis harvesting season

The alleged smuggling in of ganja, especially by train, has seen a surge recently, which enforcement agencies attribute to the cannabis harvesting season in States like Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, which continue to be the main originating sources

Around 150 kg of alleged ganja have been seized at the Ernakulam South railway station alone so far this month, with the latest seizure of nearly 10 kg on Tuesday morning (January 28). A multi-agency enforcement drive, mostly centred around railway stations, is under way to check and intercept the flow of ganja.

A combined drive by the police, excise, Narcotics Control Bureau, customs, and the Railway Protection Force has kept up the pressure on smugglers. Further adding to an already tough task of the enforcement agencies is the out-of-the-box techniques being used by the smugglers to camouflage cannabis.

For instance, last week, enforcement officials intercepted a man from Bengal on his arrival at the South railway station based on profiling. He was found carrying two tins supposedly containing paint. “Usually, migrants carry such tins while boarding trains back home from here and not when they come here. That itself was suspicious and was one of the reasons why he was stopped. On breaking open the tin, we come across packets of 13kg to 14 kg suspected ganja tightly wrapped in plastic immersed inside the paint. Based on his interrogation, we seized two more such tins from outside the station as well,” said Binoy Antony, RPF Inspector, South railway station.

He attributed the surge in ganja smuggling to potential cannabis harvesting in the source States like Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. That the ganja leaves were a lot greener than usual also added to the prognosis.

Excise department sources said that enforcement has been tightened in the wake of the surge in smuggling with a close eye on potential camouflaging techniques used by the smugglers. Meanwhile, the RPF has also increased the number of personnel deployed in plainclothes to monitor trains and stations.