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Vizag new conduit for gold, drugs smuggling
The city of destiny before attaining the status of smart city has come closer to winning the dubious distinction of becoming a major conduit for smuggling gold, ganja and synthetic sedatives. Vizag International airport drew national attention recently when 55 passengers were held and over 64 kg of gold was seized from them.
Visakhapatnam International airport drew national attention recently when 55 passengers were held and 64 kg of gold seized
Visakhapatnam: The city of destiny before attaining the status of smart city has come closer to winning the dubious distinction of becoming a major conduit for smuggling gold, ganja and synthetic sedatives. Vizag International airport drew national attention recently when 55 passengers were held and over 64 kg of gold was seized from them.
Yet it is ganja which takes the cake which has been flowing under the carpet undetected. What was being seized by the police is said to be small quantities but tonnes of ganja is being smuggled out from the agency area on a regular basis. In one cache on Wednesday evening, Rs 2 crore worth ganja was seized by the police in Kasimkota of Visakhapatnam district.
Top police officials yet maintain that their men were doing exemplary work and curtailing the trade. According to their own figures, the police seized over 12,200 kg of ganja in 2013 and it doubled to 24,500 kg in 2014 indicating that the quantum of quantity being smuggled is increasing multiple times despite increased vigilance by the police and the excise personnel.
The smugglers are not only coming from neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Odisha but also from far flung states like Rajasthan and Gujarat. Women are also finding place in the gangs to cover up men masquerading as tourists. Recently, the police revealed that gang wars have begun over control of the territory.
“We found some these gang members carrying sophisticated arms either to threaten the protesting tribals or for protecting themselves from the Maoists who could be squeezing money from them,’’ said a senior police officer. Ganja grows wild and is mostly cultivated on the slopes of Eastern Ghats by the tribals spread over 11 mandals of the agency tracts. Most of the cultivation is ‘committed’ to buyers in advance.
The traders mostly hailing from Tamil Nadu and Odisha pay advances and collect the crop after harvest. The tribals sow about 400 plants per acre and if the quality is good, the cultivator can earn up to Rs 50,000 per acre within a year. Each Adivasi family sows in two acres of land at a time. Regarding the glittering yellow metal, the smuggling was unknown to the local people till international flights began operating from the city since 2012.
People involved in illegal trade of gold found Vizag most convenient after Silk Air, Malindo Air and Air Asia launched their operations. While only 6.67 kg of gold was seized in 2013-2014, it was 7.2 kg before the recent haul. But the first quarter of the current year saw a dramatic rise with seizure of over 75 kg of gold. The single seizure of 64 kg is said to be the highest for any airport in the country.
By:KMP Patnaik
