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Odisha police destroy opium plants of over ₹10 Cr in Similipal tiger reserve
More than 5 lakh poppy plants over 15.64 acres of land were being grown by local villagers and officials uprooted the plants and set them ablaze
A joint team of police, excise and forest officials of Odisha has destroyed over 5 lakh opium plants in the core areas of Similipal tiger reserve in Mayurbhanj district, officials said.
Mayurbhanj superintendent of police (SP) S Sushree said an operation was launched following information about opium plants in Bakua and Kukurbhuka villages of the core area in Similipal Tiger.
“Led by Karanjia sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Subrat Kumar and Jashipur inspector of police Sanjukta Mahalik, the officials uprooted the plants and set them ablaze. More than 5 lakh poppy plants over 15.64 acres of land were being grown by local villagers. We have lodged two cases under NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act against local villagers,” said the SP.
The value of the destroyed opium plants is approximately ₹10.6 crore. “The alkaloids of opium are banned in India and that’s why the growing of opium is prohibited in the country except the notified tracts in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. The NDPS Act empowers the Central Government to permit and regulate cultivation of opium poppy for medical and scientific purposes,” she said.
Officials said they are investigating whether the villagers were growing opium in collusion with local forest officials. “We are trying to find out if opium is being grown in more areas of the core,” said a police official.
