Lucknow: Around 327 kg of ganja being smuggled from Nepal into India was seized in Uttar Pradesh's Maharajganj district on Monday. A joint team of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the excise department intercepted a truck after a brief chase along the Indo-Nepal border. The accused truck driver has been arrested.
The seizure occurred in the Thoothibari-Sonauli border belt following intelligence inputs that a Haryana-registered truck was transporting a large consignment of cannabis from Kathmandu, concealed in the vehicle's cabin. A coordinated surveillance operation was launched by the joint team, led by Inspector Subhash Chandra, along the Sonauli route.
In the early hours of Monday, the suspect truck crossed into Indian territory. On noticing heightened security presence, the driver allegedly attempted to speed away but was intercepted near Chakrar village in Bargadwa. Sleuths recovered 21 tightly packed bundles of ganja hidden in the truck's cabin. Each bundle weighed approximately 16 kg, bringing the total seizure to 327 kg.
The accused driver, Ranjeet Giri (37), a resident of West Champaran district in Bihar, was produced before a local court, which sent him to judicial custody. Authorities seized both the truck and the contraband before handing them over to Bargadwa police.
Circle Officer Anirudh Kumar stated that the operation was part of an ongoing campaign against illegal narcotics smuggling and termed it a major success in curbing cross-border drug networks. A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the NDPS Act.
Officials said further investigation is underway to trace the source and destination of the consignment, identify other members of the trafficking network, and ascertain whether the accused is linked to a larger interstate or international smuggling syndicate.
