NEW DELHI: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized around 740 kg of cannabis and arrested 13 persons during eight operations across the country in the last fortnight, the agency said on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the agency intercepted two trucks coming from Visakhapatnam at Old Dhamtari Road near Raipur.
A search of the vehicles led to the recovery of 61 packets suspected to be ganja, concealed in 10 sacks in the loading areas. Field testing confirmed the presence of cannabis. A total of 375.95 kg of cannabis and the two trucks were seized under the NDPS Act, 1985. Four persons were arrested.
On August 26, 2026, the agency had seized around 124 kg of cannabis concealed in a truck near Raipur. The truck was seized, and one person was arrested.
On September 5, 2026, DRI officers, acting on specific intelligence, intercepted a truck after a chase on the Aurangabad–Patna Highway near Patna.
During the interception, the officers were attacked, injuring one officer, while the driver escaped. A search of the vehicle led to the detection of a secret cavity behind the driver’s cabin. It contained 90 packets of ganja, confirmed through field testing. A total of 140.5 kg of ganja and the truck were seized.
On September 1, officers intercepted a suspected vehicle near Ludhiana in Punjab. A search of the car led to the recovery of 67 packets containing around 69 kg of cannabis.
The packets were concealed in specially created cavities in the vehicle’s floor. The contraband and vehicle were seized, and two persons were arrested.
On September 3, DRI intercepted three persons travelling in the general compartment of the Amarnath Express at Gorakhpur Railway Station. A personal search led to the recovery of around 5 kg of charas (hashish), concealed by two passengers in knee-cap-like coverings wrapped around their thighs and hidden inside their sarees.
Investigations indicated that the charas had been smuggled from Nepal. The recovered charas/hashish were seized, and all three persons were arrested.
In three separate operations over the last 15 days, DRI officers also intercepted three passengers arriving from Hanoi, Vietnam, and Bangkok, Thailand, at Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports.
The operations resulted in the seizure of approximately 24.6 kg of high-potency cannabis. Three persons were arrested.