Visakhapatnam: Andhra Pradesh police on Saturday seized more than two lakh kilograms of cannabis worth Rs.850 crore under “Operation Parivartana” in Koduru village near Anakapalli in Visakhapatnam district.
DGP Mr. Gautam Sawang IPS said police and ACB had seized more than 2 lakh kg of cannabis in Andhra Pradesh in the last one and a half years. The state has a decades-long crackdown on the cannabis trade, network, and smuggling.
The DGP said that “Operation Parivartana” launched on October 31 last year was aimed at curbing the cannabis menace in Andhra Pradesh. The transformation of the operation was led by the Andhra Pradesh Police in collaboration with the Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB) to settle other AOB (Andhra-Odisha Border) Agency areas in Visakhapatnam. There is a network of drug mafias in Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Odisha. From there, the cannabis is transported across the country, said DGP Mr. Sawang.
“From November 2021 to February 2022, the Andhra Pradesh police deforested 7,552 acres of cannabis plants,” the Andhra Pradesh police said. Nearly 2 lakh kg of processed marijuana was seized while being sent out after harvest. The 2 lakh kg of cannabis was set on fire in Visakhapatnam on Saturday, police said.
“As cannabis has been cultivated in ten areas for decades, the police have also rehabilitated the staff of the Revenue, Tribal Welfare, Agriculture and Integrated Tribal Development Authority (ITDA) by providing them with alternative livelihood opportunities for those engaged in business,” he said.
Police have carried out several raids in the vicinity of the Andhra Pradesh- Odisha border in Visakhapatnam district, which is notorious for cannabis cultivation.
Speaking at a press conference organized on the occasion, the DGP said that 2 lakh kg of cannabis was being secretly destroyed today. Our government has instructed the SEB to curb marijuana, there are two parts to the transformation of the operation, one is through technology, the other is intensive vigilance, and previously 3000 acres were destroyed in 2016-17, now 7,552 acres have been destroyed by technology and innovation.”
Andhra Pradesh police have devised this “Operation Parivartana” with a two-pronged strategy. While the primary goal is to find and destroy cannabis crops, the operation also aims to raise awareness among indigenous communities involved in production. The operation, which is staffed by Revenue, Tribal Welfare, Agriculture, and ITDA staff, aims to rehabilitate people involved in the cannabis trade by providing them with alternative livelihood opportunities.
The DGP said more than 3 lakh kg of cannabis was seized last year. Most of the cannabis cultivation takes place on the Andhra Pradesh- Odisha border, with most of the cultivation taking place in 29 districts of Orissa and 2 districts and 11 zones in Andhra Pradesh. By geo-mapping the exit routes of the territory, we found that most of the exit routes are in Andhra Pradesh.
The DGP said the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border was a vast area and the influence of the Naxals and Maoists was high, mainly promoting the cannabis trade for their own revenue. “The Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border is a very wide area and the influence of Naxals and Maoists is high. Due to this, the Andhra Pradesh police and the government could not reach the area. But, since last year, the drive focused on the Special Enforcement Bureau (SEB) and the Police Department has resulted in the fruits of today’s labor. Due to surveillance and monitoring of exit routes, we also came to know about the cannabis smugglers, “said DGP Mr. Gautam Sawang IPS.
Our Citizen Reporter,
Venkata T Reddy
