Ganja & Brown Sugar Worth Rs 70 Lakh Seized, 2 Held

Police and excise officials on Sunday seized ganja and brown sugar worth around Rs 70 lakh from two different places in and around the Silk City and arrested two persons.
    
While Golanthara police seized over 1,108 kg of ganja and a truck in which it was being carried at Sorala junction, the Berhampur excise department seized 32 grams of brown sugar worth Rs 3.20 lakh at Sriram Nagar area under the Bada Bazar police station limits.
    
The truck driver was identified as Sushant Kumar Mohanty (43) of Kendrapada district. Maheswar Maharana (32) of Sriram Nagar Street here was held for possessing brown sugar, officials said.
    
Preliminary inquiry revealed the ganja was being illegally transported from the Srikakulam area in Andhra Pradesh to Guwahati in Assam, SP (Berhampur) Saravana Vivek M said. The ganja packed in 24 sacks was being transported in the truck in the guise of husk, he said.
    
During checking of vehicles at Sorala junction on Saturday, police stopped a truck for inspection and found the ganja-packed sacks, the SP said.
    
Similarly, acting on a tip-off, excise officials caught Moharana with 32 grams of brown sugar, said Manisha Bhol, inspector of excise, Berhampur.