Customs nab two with 2.5 kg ganja hidden in shampoo bottles

Customs authorities at Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport have arrested two passengers for allegedly possessing 2.5 kg of hydroponic weed (ganja) concealed in bottles of shampoo.

Officials said the contraband, valued at over Rs 2 crore in the international drug market, was recovered from the duo who had arrived from Bangkok on Indo-Thai Airlines flight SL214. The narcotics were hidden inside tin containers and PET bottles of shampoo. Both accused are under interrogation and further investigation is ongoing.

This is the third seizure of hydroponic ganja by Customs officials at the Amritsar airport within a month. Earlier, 1.1 kg of ganja worth Rs 1.15 crore was recovered on September 25 from a passenger who had also arrived from Bangkok via Indo-Thai Airlines.

In another case, 2.095 kg of ganja valued at Rs 2.09 crore was seized on September 30 from a passenger who landed from Bangkok via Kuala Lumpur.

Earlier this year, the Customs Department at the airport had made two major seizures — 7 kg of hydroponic weed valued at Rs 7 crore from a Malaysia returnee on May 5, and 5 kg valued at Rs 5 crore from a Thailand returnee on May 17.

Officials said these repeated recoveries indicate that the airport is being used as a transit point by international drug traffickers. Surveillance has since been intensified.