With the recent operation, security forces in Tripura’s Sepahijala district have eradicated around 30 lakh ganja plants, totaling Rs 145 crore in value, within just 10 days. The joint operations by central and state security forces resulted in the destruction of approximately six lakh young ganja plants across 65 plots spanning about 200 acres.
The estimated market worth of the destroyed marijuana plants is roughly Rs 36 crore. Various forces including Tripura police, Tripura State Rifles, Assam Rifles, BSF, and local authorities collaborated to eliminate the ganja plants in several villages under three police station areas in Sepahijala district, which borders Bangladesh.
Earlier operations on December 30 and January 3 saw security forces destroying over 23 lakh marijuana plants valued at around Rs 108 crore in the same district. Anti-narcotics efforts led by district police officials have also targeted illicit ganja cultivation in other districts, resulting in arrests under the NDPS Act, 1985.
The cultivation of dry ganja in Tripura is primarily for smuggling to states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, fetching higher prices. Residents involved in cultivation often encroach upon forest and government lands illegally. The NDPS Act strictly prohibits the cultivation, possession, sale, or consumption of narcotic substances, with penalties including heavy fines and up to 20 years of imprisonment.
In a recent drug operation, authorities seized a significant quantity of Eskuf cough syrup, cash, and mobile phones from a truck with West Bengal registration. Two individuals were arrested in connection with the seizure, and a case has been filed at Churaibari police station near the Assam border.
