38 kg Marijuana Seized From School Bags In Bihar, 3 Minors Among 5 Detained

Police have seized 38 kilograms of marijuana that was being smuggled in a student's school bag from Bihar's Hajipur, and arrested five people including three minors, officials said on Tuesday.

According to Vaishali Senior Superintendent of Police Shubhank Mishra, the marijuana amounting to Rs 4 lakh was seized after cops got a tip-off and stopped a bus that the smugglers were travelling in.

A joint team comprising the Bhagwanpur Police and the Prohibition Department (Patna) set up a blockade at Bhagwanpur Adda Chowk and stopped the bus travelling from Muzaffarpur to Patna. Thereafter, they entered the bus and conducted searches on suspicious passengers.

During the searches, cops discovered large amounts of marijuana hidden in the minors' school bags. A total of 38 kgs of the prohibited substance was recovered from the five smugglers.

The five people were arrested under 'Operation Neelkanth'. Police have taken all of them into custody and initiated legal proceedings. According to them, the smugglers were headed towards Patna to supply the drugs.

The arrests highlight the growing prevalence of usage of narcotics in Bihar, which is a dry state. What is more concerning is that three out of the five people arrested were minors, implying that young people are now being drawn into drug trafficking networks.

The seized cannabis has been taken into police custody, and further legal action is underway. Police have also launched a probe to determine the source of the contraband and identify the recipient in Patna.