Bhubaneswar: Long known as a hub for illegal ganja cultivation and trade, Malkangiri and Koraput districts are now grappling with a new and more complex challenge — hashish oil — a concentrated form of cannabis which is far harder to detect and intercept.This emerging trend has caught the attention of law enforcement agencies like the police, excise, narcotics control bureau, customs and directorate of revenue intelligence.According to Odisha Police, traffickers are increasingly shifting to hashish oil as frequent raids on bulky ganja consignments have made smuggling riskier. “Unlike dry cannabis, hash oil is easier to conceal and transport. Smugglers are favouring it as an alternative to evade law enforcement,” said DG (Crime Branch) Vinaytosh Mishra.The state, which had never reported seizure of hashish oil before, has dismantled three trafficking networks in the past three months along the Odisha-Andhra border. The first breakthrough came on Nov 2, 2025, when Chitrakonda police in Malkangiri district seized 60 litres of hashish oil and arrested two men. A second crackdown followed on Feb 9, 2026, with the seizure of two litres and the arrest of four traffickers.The most significant enforcement action came on Thursday, when police seized a staggering 1,800 litres of hashish oil valued at over Rs 200 crore. Odisha Police described the operation as unprecedented in scale as according to them this was the largest single-day seizure in the country, surpassing the 424.2 kg of hashish oil confiscated nationwide in 2024.Police sources said hashish oil is a highly concentrated form of cannabis containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive compound responsible for its potent effects. One litre of hashish oil is produced from around 40kg of raw cannabis, making it significantly more valuable than traditional marijuana products.Following this disturbing shift, Odisha Police have intensified intelligence gathering and surveillance along the Andhra and Telangana borders, regions notorious for ganja cultivation and now increasingly linked to hashish oil production. Police have appealed to locals to share information related to hash oil manufacturing and smuggling.“We have asked the SPs to remain vigilant and launch intelligence-based crackdowns. Hashish oil, extracted by crushing dry ganja in machines, is considered more than four times stronger than traditional cannabis. It can appear in liquid form or sometimes as wax, making it compact and easy to transport,” Mishra said.Enforcement officials caution that its potency and discreet packaging pose serious challenges for anti-narcotics operations. They fear that the rise of hashish oil could complicate the state’s ongoing battle against narcotics, as its compact form allows traffickers to move large quantities undetected.
