A truck that claimed to carry potatoes, actually had 15,600 bottles of banned drugs – a smuggling bid that was foiled by the excise department and Jammu and Kashmir police in Kathua on Thursday. While the driver escaped from the spot, the owner of the vehicle has been arrested. Police said the truck came from Punjab and suspect that the drugs were being smuggled to Kashmir.
“Since there was a difference between the declared weight and the actual weight of the truck, it was sent for inspection,” said Ranjit Singh, Deputy Excise Commissioner from Lakhanpur.
He said that the bottles of drugs Codeine Phosphate and Triprolidine Hydrochloride Syrup were found behind the big sacks of potatoes.
“A huge consignment of bottles of Codeine Phosphate, which has same formulation as Corex – a banned drug – has been seized. Since the youngsters these days are dependent on drugs, they find new ways to inject it,” he added.
Police said that they are investigating from all angles to find who all were involved in the drug racket.
