HP: 920-kg drugs seized, 256 arrested in special drive

In a major crackdown, more than 920 kilograms of narcotics were seized and 256 persons, including a foreigner, booked for allegedly smuggling drugs during the past seven weeks in Himachal Pradesh, a senior police official said today.
The special drive was launched by the police under a 100-day action plan, and around 88kg of cannabis, 1.7kg of opium, 760kg of poppy husk, 78kg of ganja, 275g of heroin, 20g of cocaine and 14g of smack were recovered from 207 cases, said S R Mardi, the state director-general of police (DGP).
The police also challaned 804 people on charges of illegal-mining, of which 628 were compounded and a fine of Rs 41.38 lakh was recovered, Mardi said.

Around 67 cases were registered and 45 persons were arrested for alleged involvement in forest-mafia. Forest wealth worth Rs 1.20 crore was also recovered from the offenders, the DGP said
Moreover, 25, 158 persons were challaned on various charges of not wearing seat belts, drunk driving, rash driving and using mobile phones while driving, he said, adding that the drive would continue.