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Hyderabad, Telangana : In a major anti-narcotics operation, the Telangana Police’s Elite Action Group for Drug Law Enforcement (EAGLE) Force seized 41.01 kg of ganja from an Odisha-registered private travels bus in Hyderabad and arrested three members of the bus staff for allegedly transporting the contraband.
The operation was carried out on July 11 in Auto Nagar by the Rachakonda Narcotics Police Station with support from the Regional Narcotics Control Cell (RNCC), Khammam. Officials recovered ganja worth nearly Rs 20.5 lakh, besides seizing the private bus and four mobile phones.
The arrested accused have been identified as Laxman Kurami (22), a bus helper from Malkangiri, Komala Khil (32), the driver from Koraput, and Bubu Madakami (33), the conductor from Malkangiri. All three are residents of Odisha.
According to investigators, the trio admitted they had agreed to transport the consignment from Odisha to Hyderabad in exchange for a commission. The narcotics were allegedly meant to be handed over to a local contact upon arrival in the city.
Police said two more suspects remain on the run, including Nubin, a resident of Malkangiri, and an unidentified receiver based in Hyderabad. A case has been registered at the Rachakonda Narcotics Police Station, and further investigation is underway.
Officials noted that this is the third instance in recent months in which private bus staff have allegedly been found involved in ganja smuggling. On May 21, the EAGLE Force had seized 21 kg of ganja from another private bus travelling from Malkangiri to Hyderabad and arrested four staff members.
In a separate operation, the EAGLE Force, in coordination with the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Raipur, also dismantled an interstate drug trafficking network by seizing 385 kg of ganja near the Chhattisgarh-Maharashtra border after a week-long surveillance operation. The accused was tracked from Jeypore in Odisha before being intercepted en route to Maharashtra and Rajasthan.
The EAGLE Force has urged private bus operators to strengthen vigilance and ensure their vehicles are not used as carriers for illegal narcotics.
