Bhubaneswar: The Anti-Narcotics Squad (ANS) of Delhi Police has arrested a key interstate ganja supplier from Odisha’s Kandhamal district, dealing a significant blow to a narcotics network operating between Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi-NCR.
The arrested person has been identified as Aakash Kumar Digal, a resident of a remote forested village in Kandhamal district.
The arrest came after sustained surveillance and technical intelligence following an earlier seizure. On the intervening night of March 11 and 12, a team of the Anti-Narcotics Squad intercepted two men — Akbar (36) and Firoj Khan (41), both residents of Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh — near Kalyanpuri in Delhi. The duo was riding a scooty and carrying two white bags containing 21 kg 730 grams of ganja (a commercial quantity under the NDPS Act) and 46 grams of smack.
The contraband was valued at approximately Rs 12 lakh in the illicit market. A case was registered at Kalyanpuri Police Station under the relevant provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. During interrogation, Firoj Khan revealed that he used to procure ganja in bulk from Aakash Kumar Digal in Odisha and then distribute it across Delhi-NCR.
Police officials stated that after the initial arrests, the main supplier switched off his mobile numbers and went underground. His address was traced to a difficult-to-access forested hilly area in Kandhamal, where ganja grows naturally.
The ANS team conducted multiple raids and maintained constant technical surveillance across districts in Odisha. On March 26, acting on fresh intelligence, the team tracked Aakash Kumar Digal from Kandhamal to Bhubaneswar, where he was apprehended after a brief chase. He was formally brought to Delhi on March 28 and arrested in the case.
During preliminary interrogation, Aakash Kumar Digal reportedly admitted that he exploited the dense forest cover and difficult terrain of his village, which made regular police checks challenging. He confessed to supplying ganja in bulk quantities to contacts in Delhi-NCR for the past two to three years after getting in touch with Firoj Khan.
His primary motive, police said, was quick financial gain as part of an organised interstate drug syndicate. East District Police officials described the arrest as a major success, noting that targeting the primary source would help curb the continuous inflow of psychotropic substances into the national capital region.
Further investigation is underway to uncover forward and backward linkages in the narcotics supply chain. The accused is being questioned for more details.
