41 quintals of poppy husk seized in Bathinda, 1 arrested: Punjab Police

A drug smuggler was arrested after the seizure of 41 quintals of poppy husk being smuggled in a container truck from Madhya Pradesh (MP).

A drug smuggler was arrested after the seizure of 41 quintals of poppy husk being smuggled in a container truck from Madhya Pradesh (MP), said a top Punjab Police officer on Monday.

During checking of the vehicle, the police recovered 210 bags carrying 41 quintals of the poppy husk. (Sanjeev Kumar/HT)

The arrested drug smuggler has been identified as Sandeep Singh alias Kaka. The truck driver is a resident of Raipur Arian village in Nakodar, Jalandhar, said Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav.

Acting on a tip off police teams put up a special checking and stopped the container truck for checking. During checking of the vehicle, the police recovered 210 bags carrying 41 quintals of the poppy husk, he said.

“During the preliminary investigation, it came to notice that this consignment was supposed to be delivered in the area of Jalandhar, Moga and Ferozepur districts. Our teams are working tirelessly to uncover the entire network, following both forward and backward linkages,” he added.

Assistant inspector general of police Avneet Kaur Sidhu said the drug smuggler has confessed to having delivered such big consignments of poppy husk from Pratapgarh in MP to Punjab earlier as well. Further investigations are on, she said.