Bhubaneswar, Jun 26 (IANS) The special task force (STF) of the Odisha crime branch has seized brown sugar of 1 kg 30 gram valued at Rs 1 crore in Odisha's Khurda district and arrested four drug paddlers involved in the illegal trade, police said on Sunday.

Acting on a tip-off, a team of the STF conducted a raid at Khurda on Saturday and seized the narcotic drugs along with other incriminating materials from the four drug paddlers.

The apprehended four drug peddlers have been identified as Rakesh Kumar Barik, Biranchinarayan Sahoo, Jagabandhu Biswal and Santosh Routray. All four persons hail from Khordha district, the police said.

The STF has registered a case under relevant sections of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and forwarded the accused to local court.

Since 2020, STF in the special drive against narcotic drugs has seized more than 55 kg of brown sugar, 111 quintals of ganja, 202 grams of cocaine, 750 grams of opium and arrested 156 drug peddlers.