Nashik farmer found cultivating ganja on tomato farm, arrested

Nashik: A 40-year-old farmer in Chandwad taluka has been arrested for growing ganja in the midst of his tomato farm.The rural police initially received information that Ravindra Gangurde was clandestinely growing the ganja and accordingly, raided his place on Wednesday this week. They found 65 plants of ganja, weighing approximately 215kg. The police said the ganja plants seized from the tomato farm were worth over Rs12.9 lakh.The police added that Gangurde was illegally the cultivating ganja and took up a crop of tomatoes just so that the former would not be spotted by anyone.Gangurde was arrested and a case was registered under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, against him by the Vadner Bhairav police, who said they also have a pending case of robbery against him, and he has a history of criminal activity.Now, the police are investigating where and to whom Gangurde was going to sell the ganja.The raid was conducted by a team of the local crime branch (LCB) of the Nashik rural police, led by police inspector Raju Surve.