Gajapati: The forest dominated Gajapati district of Odisha has turned into a safe haven for illegal trade of ganja. This naturally gifted district has hundreds of acres of illegal cannabis farming. It seems the unreachable hilly areas of the district have turned as the birthplace of ganja. At this juncture, let us have an analysis about the illegal trade of ganja in this district in the last three years. A ground zero report.
Gajapati district is situated in the southern part of Odisha and is adjacent to the border of neighboring Andhra Pradesh as well as Ganjam, Rayagada and Kandhamal districts of Odisha.
Surrounded by hilly mountains and dense forests, Gajapati District is well known for its rich literature, culture, history and tradition. This district has been named after Maharaja Krishnachandra Gajapati Narayan Dev, the torch bearer of the movement that led to birth of Utkala Pradesh.
However, over the years, Gajapati district has earned a bad name for cannabis farming. Rampant ganja farming are going on in the Mohana, R Udaygiri and Adaba Police limits of the district. In order to gain more profit on high mountains, these blue poisons are being cultivated by innocent people in the remote areas.
It is being said that, in the district, cannabis is being firmed with the indirect support of the ganja mafias who are operating from out of the State. They choose high mountains and dense forests for the illegal cultivation of Ganja. The locals also adopt this farming in the hope of more profit.
Starting from cannabis seeds to other elements, the inter-state mafias supply the essential ingredients for this illegal farming. After the harvest, the illegal trade of ganja is carried out by bribing some police officers and some officers of the Excise department.
Sometimes police and Excise department officials nab some mafias but many mafias escape taking the advantage of the loopholes.
Marijuana, cannabis and other intoxicants coming from Gajapati district are being seized in Berhampur and Bhubaneswar.
Consumption of ganja has become a trend for young people these days. Educated unemployed youth are also seen entering to this illegal trade in the hope of earning huge in less time. Accordingly, they are getting nabbed by Police and spending life in the dark rooms of the jail. Criminal activity has also increased.
There are murders taking place in the area due to cannabis trading. Even, the police station is under attack. The villagers of Jharanpur had razed the Adaba Police Station on 13. 09.2022 while staging protest to arrest accused persons of illegal ganja trade.
Reportedly, the Excise department is not active as expected in this district to check illegal ganja trade. Of course, Police are nabbing illegal ganja traders and mafias.
According to the data received from Police, there have been 70 cases of illegal ganja trade in this district in various areas. 16,238 kg ganja was seized while 155 persons have been arrested.
Similarly, in the case of smuggling of cannabis, 12,437 kg ganja cannabis have been seized, and 70 accused have been arrested in 2022.
In 2023, the case of smuggling of cannabis in a huge amount of cannabis was seized while 62 cases were registered and fifty-five accused were arrested.
In 2021 ganja farming was done in about 706 acre area in the unreachable hilly areas of Mohana, Adaba and R Udyaygiri Police limits. Police took action against this and chopped and destroyed illegal ganja farming while 94 lakh, 13 thousand 787 ganja trees were destroyed. 59 cases were registered in this matter.
In 2020 about 39 lakh 54 thousand 450 ganja plants had been cultivated in the unreachable hilly areas of this district in 1979.147 acre area. Police destroyed all the trees and registered 35 cases.
From 2023 January to till date about 10 lakh 54 thousand 464 ganja plants cultivated in 527.232 area have been destroyed by police. So far 9 cases have been registered in different Police Stations.
The seized ganja was kept in the warehouse (Malkhana) as per the orders of the court. Later 15892 kg cannabis seized in 2022 through 29 cases and 12339 kg cannabis seized in 2023 through 57 cases were destroyed by Police. However, despite this, the Ganja mafias are running the illegal trade in this district.
If the illegal ganja trade will not be rooted out from Gajapati district the youth mass of this district would have a dark future, the intellectuals of the district said.
Report: Suman Patnaik, Mohana, Gajapati
Ms Kalinga