Sustained surveillance has led to the seizure of nearly 250 kg of ganja smuggled in a tanker lorry in the guise of rice bran oil at Kuruppampady near Perumbavoor on Friday afternoon.
The consignment was found concealed in over 100 tightly sealed packets in one of the five secret chambers built inside the tanker. The driver, also the owner of the tanker, Selvan from Usilampatti in Tamil Nadu, was arrested, and the tanker was taken into custody. The idea was perhaps to exploit the lesser traffic and slack enforcement in view of Vishu.
“Preliminary investigations suggest that the narcotic was sourced from the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border. We need to probe further to find out the destination and source, for which we plan to seek the custody of the man arrested for interrogation,” said K. Karthik, District Police Chief (Ernakulam Rural).
It is learnt that the consignment was smuggled in against multiple orders from the State. Ganja is available for ₹2,000 to ₹3,000 a kg along the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha belt, and it could fetch anywhere between ₹25,000 and ₹30,000 in Kerala, while the margin could be even bigger when sold in smaller lots to retailers. It is also suspected that the accused in a previous ganja case is involved in this one too.
Reports also suggest that the consignment was perhaps headed to Idukki. “The possibility of rebranding it as ‘Idukki stuff’, which is known for its quality, cannot be ruled out either,” said police sources.
However, Excise sources said it was not a sustainable business model for long, as the clients would notice the difference in quality sooner than later. Ganja from the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha belt is considered to be so much inferior in quality.
“Idukki was even otherwise a favoured destination on account of its status as a popular tourist spot. Also, large-scale extraction of hashish oil from ganja is thriving in Idukki, while previously it took place in Kochi,” said an Excise official.
Among other things, the Ernakulam Rural police have been attaching property and bank deposits of the accused as a possible deterrent. For instance, five cents and ₹4 lakh have been attached by the police in the last couple of years.
