Jharkhand: Latehar police launch offensive against poppy

THE JHARKHAND STORY NETWORK

Daltonganj, January 24: Latehar district police have stepped up their crackdown against the cultivation and smuggling of poppy.

It’s like a war against narco extremism in Latehar. Balumath and Herhunj police limits in Latehar are infamous for poppy cultivation.

Latehar SP Anjani Anjan has opened an all-out drive against poppy cultivation in the district.

Unlawful  trade

What the police lay hands on is just the tip of the iceberg of this unlawful trade. It is grown on a much larger scale. People grow it knowing full well its consequences.

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The mukhiyas, the panchayat samiti people all know about it but maintain a stiff upper lip attitude towards it. As regards its cultivation, police in this district are destroying acres and acres of poppy crops.

Poppy cultivation

Latehar district police have destroyed 52 acres of poppy cultivation in a month under the limits of Balumath, Baariyatu, and Herhunj police stations.

Again, it has seized around 7.7 kgs of opium. The latest seizure was 3.7 kgs under the limits of the Balumath police station.  The number of arrests is 5, including three today.

Police find it challenging to arrest where illicit cultivation is discovered as no one comes claiming either a plot of land on which the poppy crop is grown or the crop.

It’s mostly forest land or gair majarua land near the water source where this illicit crop is cultivated.

Sources said the forest department should also pitch in for the drive against poppy cultivation as in 6 plots of land out of 10, its forest land where this cultivation is on.