Salem: The Kolathur police on Friday arrested a 70-year-old farmer, Madappan of the hilly Palamalai area near Mettur for allegedly cultivagting ganja in his farm and seized 30-kg of the stuff worth Rs 3 lakh. based on an information from the locals that growing of marijuana was resurfacing in Palamalai, police undertook a surprise visit to the steep hilly terrain which until a few years back was not even accessible by any road, and stumbled on Madappan's farm at Thalaikadu hill hamlet and effected the seizure.
As Palamalai was inaccessible, turning to be a haven for anti-social elements who were allegedly growing ganja and brewing illicit arrack, police said during 2013, the district administration had laid a 'kutcha' mud road for a distance of 40-km at a cost of Rs 2 crore under the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.
The new road had enabled jeeps to go up to Palamalai, thereby curbing such anti-social activities. But this latest seizure of 'ganja', claimed to be the first such in last five years has worried the administration, sources added.
Three get life terms in Namakkal Meanwhile, in another development in neighbouring Namakkal district, the district additional sessions judge, Mr. Dhanasekaran on Friday convicted and sentenced to life three persons.
The men were identified as Venkatachalam, Nagaraj and Manikantan, who fatally shot at a farmer's son, Jayapal, who hailed from a village near Kollimalai, with their country pistol.
Two of the accused, both of whom reportedly were related to Jayapal, had disapproved of his love marriage to their sister, leading to the murder. The judge also imposed a fine of Rs.1,000 on each of the accused.
