From ganja to gold: Odisha Police trace ₹10 crore assets from two persons in backward district

The Kandhamal police in Odisha went looking for Ganja, but seem to have ended up stumbling upon their small real estate empire.

In a meticulously conducted financial investigation, police unearthed assets worth around Rs 10 crore allegedly accumulated by two men who were caught carrying marijuana from the area. Properties spread across two separate narcotics syndicates were frozen under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

Highlighting the new focus on following the money trail, Kandhamal Police Inspector Harisha BC said, “This action reflects a policy-driven shift from merely seizing drugs to dismantling the economic ecosystem that sustains drug trafficking.”

But the financial investigation revealed details that were as surprising as they were intriguing.

One of the accused, Asish Kumar Digal of Kandhamal, had dutifully registered his modest roadside dhaba under the Income Tax Act – but the enthusiasm seemed to end there. According to investigators, Digal’s declared income was largely limited to the pension his widowed mother received.

“He started Dhaba only two years ago,” said a senior police officer, “but somehow managed to accumulate property worth Rs 5.10 billion. Of this, assets worth Rs 4.59 billion have already been frozen.” It turns out that Dhaba does a lot more work on paper than on the stove.

Digal had purchased five pieces of land and two buildings with no known significant source of income. The second situation was no less surprising. Dillip Kumar Goud, a resident of Ganjam district who settled in Gujarat, was caught carrying marijuana. When the police traced his financial footprint, they came across another shock: Goud had allegedly accumulated assets worth ₹4.69 crore in income, which investigators say flowed directly from the cannabis business.

“The freeze was carried out after systematic financial profiling of the accused and affected persons, examination of bank accounts, transaction patterns, property documents and asset ownership and a clear ‘Reason to Believe’ that the frozen assets were linked to proceeds of narcotics trade,” said Phulbani Sadar Sub-Divisional Police Officer Subhrajit Biswal.

Additional Superintendent of Police Ramendra Prasad said, “Experience has shown that narcotics gangs often survive arrests by sustaining operations through accumulated wealth. Freezing assets will help prevent illicit reinvestment, disrupt supply chains and recruitment, weaken the operational capacity of organized drug networks.”

According to Kandhamal SP Mr. Harisha, the operation involved close coordination with revenue authorities, tax offices, banks and financial institutions, reflecting a technology-enabled and intelligence-driven policing approach. “This type of collaboration is vital in tracking layered and hidden money trails,” he said.