10.9 kg ‘chitta’ seized in Himachal over nine months, 28.2 per cent more than last year

The state has witnessed a surge in the cases of ‘chitta’ seizure between January 1 and September 30 compared to the last year. The police have seized around 10.92 kg of ‘chitta’ (heroin) till September 30 this year, compared to 7.8 kg of the contraband seized during the same period last year, registering an increase of 28.2 per cent.

This year, the police have also seized 275.5 kg of cannabis, 20.8 kg of opium, 469.12 kg of poppy husk, 42.6 kg of ganja, 3.95 lakh poppy plants, 2.07 gm of smack, 25.02 gm of MDMA, etc.

From January 1, 2024, to September 30, 2024, the police had seized around 7.8 kg of heroin, 205.7 kg of ‘charas’, 33.7 kg of opium, 570 kg of poppy husk, 3.78 lakh poppy plants, 6.09 gm of smack, 25.2 kg of ganja, 5.21 gm of cocaine and 3.3 gm of MDMA.

Also, the total number of cases registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act has increased by 33 per cent this year. A total of 1,618 cases have been registered so far. As per the data from the Himachal Pradesh Police, the highest number of 257 cases have been registered in Mandi district, followed by Shimla (211), Bilaspur (188), Kullu (178), Kangra (156), Sirmaur (132), Solan (81), Una (76), Hamirpur (75), Chamba (69), Nurpur police district (68), Baddi police district (67), Dehra police district (36), Kinnaur (20) and Lahaul and Spiti district (4).

As per a senior police officer, the surge in seizure is the result of effective measures and quick action being taken by the police to curb the rising drug menace in the state. The police states that during the past one year, they have successfully taken down major drug mafias that were responsible for supplying drugs in the state.