Nepalgunj, June 19

Banke Police seized a huge amount of opium today.

According to Superintendent of Police Arun Poudel of Banke District Police Office, four persons were held with 18 kg opium from Babakuti in Phultekra, Banke, at around 5:00am while they were trying to smuggle the narcotic to India.

The arrested have been identified as Rajendra Bishwokarma, 25, Bir Bahadur Bishwokarma, 25, and Prithvi Bahadur Bishwokarma, 50, of Tribeni Nalgadh Rural Municipality, Jajarkot; and Sharmila Magar, 49, of Uttarganga Municipality, Rukum.

They were made public on the premises of the district police office today itself.

Police have also arrested the driver of the auto rickshaw they were riding and another man by the name of Ammar Bahadur Darai of Surkhet for further investigation into the case.

Police, citing their investigation, have revealed that opium is being cultivated secretly at a number of places in districts such as Dailekh, Jajarkot, Rukum and Salyan with the help of Indian drug smugglers.