JOWAI/SHILLONG
The East Jaintia Hills police seized 1556 kg of marijuana worth Rs 4.7 crore from a mini truckat Lum Shnong in the district, informed a statement released by the police on Wednesday.
According to the statement, after receiving a tip off that a mini truck (TR-05B1903) was travelling from Umkiang to Khliehriat on National Highway 6 carrying contraband, the police along with a team of Anti Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) tried to stop the vehicle at the Lum Shnong Police Station, but it did not stop.
The team of personnel chased the vehicle and found it abandoned at 2 km away from the Lum Shnong Check Point at around 4 pm on Tuesday. According to the statement, the driver of the mini truck and passengers managed to make a hasty escape from the scene. The police registered a case as per provision of the law and further investigation into the matter is on.
Meanwhile, stating that the state police will not spare anybody involved in drug trafficking, Home Minister Lahkmen Rymbui lauded the efforts of the police in cracking down on the drug menace in the state.
“Credit to the police department; they have done wonderful work and this should be a sustained effort. The journey of real fight against drugs has begun and we should be able to reach a logical end where we could achieve a three-point goal – dismantling the network of traffickers, punish them and the kingpins and rehabilitate drug users,” he said.
Of late, the Meghalaya police has intensified its crackdown on drug trafficking in the state. Earlier on August 9, the ANTF, East Khasi Hills, arrested 37 people, including five women and seized a huge amount of contraband from Shillong’s Polo Bazaar.
Reacting to the seizure and arrest, Rymbui, however, said that there was no information that drugs are being sold openly in broad daylight everywhere in Shillong.
“I have seen the people at large are very happy with this action of the police so let us not question how the drugs were available. Instead, we continue our fight against drug menace and make reach its logical end, which is to dismantle all the networks of drug traffickers and rehabilitation of users,” he said.