AHMEDABAD: Narcotic substances like ganja (cannabis), are making their way back into the young blood of urban Gujarat, especially Ahmedabad. During interrogation of two carriers arrested by Navsari police earlier this week, it came to light that the consignment of 200 kg of ganja dispatched from Sangli in Maharashtra was meant for Ahmedabad.

Special Operation Group (SOG) had also made seizures of ganja twice in one month. “That stock was also meant to reach the drug mafia in Ahmedabad,” said an SOG official.

It is not just these large seizures that suggest that more youngsters are turning consuming ganja rather than drugs like brown sugar, LSD or mephedrone (MD).

Zonal Director of Narcotics Control Bureau (Gujarat) Hariom Gandhi also believes that consumption of ganja has been on the rise for a few months.

“During the last few months we have been organizing various awareness programmes across the state. We have found that consumption of ganja is going up in urban areas as well,” Gandhi added.

Senior police officers said films depicting drug consumption and some music tracks also are factors resulting in more youngsters taking to ganja and charas (cannabis resin).

“Easy availability of narcotics like ganja and charas is the main reason for the turnaround. Moreover, its intake is less complicated than other drugs,” said one youngster, on condition of anonymity.

Meanwhile the team that seized the consignment, arrived in Ahmedabad for further investigation of the case. IG, Surat range Narsimha Komar said tha ton checking the phone seized from Ganesh Sargar, the driver of the vehicle carrying the ganja, they found a number registered in Ahmedabad.

“Sargar’s interrogation revealed that the person calling from the Ahmedabad-based number was constantly guiding them,” added Komar.

Surat Police officers said a team is camping in Ahmedabad and tracking movements of that cell phone with help from crime branch.

