Ganja, hash oil worth Rs 1.25 cr seized in Malkangiri

Malkangiri: The police have seized 1,250 kg of ganja and 2 kg of hashish oil, together valued at Rs 1.25 crore, from separate places in Malkangiri district in two days.

Hashish oil or hash oil is extracted from the cannabis plant and is also a narcotic drug. “During an enforcement drive, the police busted an illegal hash manufacturing unit at a place under Chitrakonda police station limit in Malkangiri district and seized various items from there,” the police said on Monday.

The seized hash oil is worth Rs 25 lakh. A case was registered in this connection and further investigation is going on to trace forward and backward linkages of the interstate network involved, the police said. Over 30 kg of ganja was also seized from the manufacturing unit where they are transformed into oil or semi-liquid form before being smuggled outside the State.

The police said so far, 62 kg of hash oil, approximately valued at Rs.7.5 crore, was seized in the last three months. Malkangiri SP Vinod Patil said the police have launched a dedicated helpline number, 9438916972, for sharing information related to hash oil manufacturing and smuggling in the district and appealed to public to cooperate.

Meanwhile, the police on Sunday seized ganja worth Rs 1 crore from a forest in the same district. Fifty-six bags, containing around 1,250 kg of ganja, were found in a forest at Bejingwada in Kalimela police station area. Patil said efforts are being made to trace the source of the drugs and identify those involved. He said in 2025, approximately 31,000 kg of ganja was recovered in the district.

The contraband smuggled from different parts, mostly from Malkangiri district, makes its way to northern and southern parts of the country by a well-oiled racket of middlemen. The large quantity of seizure in the recent past puts Malkangiri on the pedestal of the State’s largest ganja producing district. The contraband is smuggled to various destinations either by road or rail, according to sources.

The hashish oil unit comprised machinery including iron-made machine fitted with cylindrical processing container, pressure cooker, iron-made compressor, gas burner fitted with pipe, cylinder and plastic drums.