Palakkad (Keralam), Sep 19 (PTI) Customs officials seized 51.750 kg of ganja valued at Rs 25.88 lakh from Palakkad Junction railway station, officials said on Saturday.
The seizure was made on September 17 by officers of the Customs Preventive Unit, Palakkad, and Customs Preventive Division, Thrissur, based on intelligence about the movement of narcotic substances through trains bound for Keralam via Palakkad, they said.
Following the intelligence input, a team of officers was deployed for surveillance at the railway station, according to Customs.
During the operation, the team spotted five backpacks lying unattended at the railway station after some trains had departed, officials said.
Enquiries confirmed that the bags had been abandoned, following which the Customs team, with the assistance of the Railway Protection Force, Palakkad, took them into custody and opened them for examination.
Each backpack contained five packets of ganja, with each packet weighing approximately two kg.
The packets were wrapped in green polythene covers and brown adhesive tape and concealed inside the backpacks to facilitate transportation while evading detection, officials said.
The five backpacks and the ganja packets were seized and subsequently produced before the Sessions Court for further proceedings, they said.
An investigation has been launched to identify the people who placed the bags containing ganja at the railway station, officials added. PTI TBA SSK
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