Four held with ganja worth Rs 2.9 lakh on NH

Belagavi: Stepping up its crackdown on narcotics, city police on Wednesday arrested four persons involved in ganja peddling in Tarihal-Halaga villages along the national highway. Hirebagewadi police conducted a raid and seized 2.7 kg of ganja along with other materials, collectively valued at Rs 2.9 lakh.

The arrested have been identified as Omkar Yallappa Kolekar and Nagendra Shivaji Ragi Patil from Tarihal, and Pramod Dharmendra Kasbekar and Gajanan Sachin Patil from Uchagavi.

Police Inspector Manjunath Nayak of the CCB division and his team carried out the operation and recovered 2.7 kg of ganja worth over Rs 1.3 lakh, two mobile phones worth Rs 5,000 and Rs 55,000, and a motorbike valued at Rs 1 lakh from the accused. In total, assets worth Rs 2.9 lakh were seized.

Police said surveillance has been intensified across the city to curb the production and sale of narcotics, and further investigation into the network is under way.