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1.53 lakh kg smuggled Burmese areca nuts seized in Assam, 10 arrested: Police
According to police, large gangs are involved in smuggling areca nuts from countries like Myanmar and Thailand and they use parts of vehicles ply on Assam-Mizoram route
In one of the largest seizures, Assam police on Monday recovered 1.53lakh kilograms of smuggled Burmese areca nuts from different parts of Cachar district.
Ten suspected smugglers including five from Uttar Pradesh, two from Rajasthan, one from Bihar and two Assam have been arrested in this connection.
Police recovered eight vehicles carrying the Burmese supari.
The superintendent of police of Cachar district, Numal Mahatta on Monday said they launched a 24-hour-long search operation on Sunday.
Also Read: Delhi Police bust gang of five which robbed areca nuts worth ₹70 lakh
By Monday morning, they intercepted eight vehicles carrying the smuggled areca nuts.
“Our special teams are keeping strict vigil on attempts of the smugglers across Cachar district. The consignments come from neighbouring states and the smugglers attempt to pass through Cachar to other parts of the country,” Mahatta said.
According to police, large gangs are involved in smuggling areca nuts from countries like Myanmar and Thailand and they use parts of vehicles ply on Assam-Mizoram route.
“They adopt different modus operandi to hide from the police but we have our own setup of intelligence. We are seizing almost every vehicle trying to pass through our district with smuggled Burmese Supari,” he added.
Amongst the eight vehicles recovered in the process, three have registration numbers of Uttar Pradesh, two of Rajasthan, one of Nagaland and two of Assam.
Mahatta said that they are going to place a strong charge sheet against these smugglers while producing them before the court.
“Chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has instructed us to keep strict attitude towards any such illegal activities and we are following it,” he said.
