Demand for drugs up ahead of New Year

As cops focus on big fish, truck drivers make hay

The taken for granted subordinates in interstate drug trade are stepping up efforts to push marijuana into the city following the spiraling demand for banned substances ahead of new year celebrations. With the availability of ganja taking a big hit in the state because of intensified police crackdown, the contraband is reaching its consumers in newer ways, albeit at a premium.

Truck drivers and cleaners, who help transport huge consignments, are reportedly stealing small portions to make a fast buck. Two such cases were reported in the city and one person was nabbed by a north zone task force team recently.

On December 9, Nampally railway police arrested members of a gang, including a minor, involved in smuggling cannabis. Police seized 336 kgs of cannabis worth `67 lakh from their possession.

Meanwhile, even as

cops are training their guns on the main dealers, the second channel started operations via the transporters.

On October 19, an inter-state drug peddler, Vanapalli Naga Sai, was nabbed in a joint operation involving north zone task force and Afzalgunj police. They seized 40 kilos of marijuana from Sai, the main supplier of narcotics in the city. He was wanted in two cases under NDPS Act.

In another case reported in October, a marijuana consignment of 300 kilos headed for Maharashtra from Visakhapatnam district was intercepted and seized from two inter-state peddlers, Vilas Bhausaheb Dhokane and Dnyaneshwar Mohite.

Officials seized as many as 10 bags of ganja which was concealed in an empty plastic tray surface in a goods carriage near Moosarambagh crossroads, where they were apprehended.

Meanwhile, it was revealed during an investigation that some drivers working for agents in Zaheerabad were stealing small quantities of the drug from trucks and began supplying them in Hyderabad. This was noticed by cops, who traced and nabbed one Hardik, a resident of Amberpet.