800g cocaine haul in Tirupati -- Drug Worth 40L Seized From Two Engineering Students—ToI-20.10.11

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 

Tirupati: The drug culture seems to have spread its tentacles to the holy town of Tirupati, as police seized 800 grams of cocaine from two engineering students on Wednesday. It is for the first time that such a large quantity of drug has been seized in the temple town. The students have been booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS). 
    Acting on intelligence inputs, police trapped the students – Pradeep Kumar and Madhu Kumar – at Korlagunta area in the temple town in the afternoon as they were trying to sell the narcotic substance to other students. Police recovered 800 grams of cocaine worth Rs 40 lakh from their possession. 
    “We kept a watch on them and arrested them near Korlagunta. This is the biggest cocaine haul found by the police. Earlier, we had arrested gangs trading in ganja in the temple town,” a senior police official told TOI. 
    Both are third year B Tech students. While Pradeep hails from Tirupati, Madhu belongs to Rajampet in Kadapa district. While it is a surprise as to how the duo became friends, since Pradeep is pursuing his course from a private college in Anantapur and Madhu from Annamaiah Institute of Technology in Rajampet, police suspect the role of a bigger network in the drug racket. 
    A police official said the students were booked under sections 21(E) and 27 (D) of NDPS Act. “We are interrogating them to unravel the role of the bigger players in the racket,” he said. The students didn’t reveal much as to whom they were supplying the drugs to and from where they got the huge consignment. “We would first find out for whom the drug was meant,” the official said. 
    Earlier, there was confusion over the nature of the drug. “We sent the samples to the forensic lab which confirmed that it was cocaine,” a police official said. Sources said a dose of cocaine (one gram) costs Rs 4,000-5,000 in metros. 
    Following the big cocaine seizure, police have started making enquiries in Sri Venkateswara University and other educational institutions in and around Tirupati as to whether the drug culture is prevalent among the students. 
    Meanwhile, families of both the students were shocked. “I don`t think he is involved. If he is guilty, then he has to face the consequences,” an uncle of Pradeep said. Sources said the family of Madhu believes he has been made a pawn in the murky drug dealings. 
    Experts said cocaine is a stimulant that makes one euphoric. In Indian market, 100 grams of cocaine is traded for one kg of pure heroin, the cost of which is estimated to be Rs 1 crore in the international market.