2 weeks ago
Odisha Intensifies Crackdown on Illegal Ganja Cultivation on Government Land
The government of a state in India called Odisha is working hard to stop people from growing ganja, a plant used to make an illegal drug.
Last year, police found and destroyed many secret ganja farms.
These farms covered a very large area of land, bigger than thousands of football fields.
Some of that land belonged to the government itself.
Now, the government wants to make sure no one grows ganja there again.
Officials have made maps showing exactly where the old farms were.
Government workers are being told to visit these places regularly and watch closely.
They also have to write down details about every piece of land, like its location on the map.
This way, if someone tries to grow ganja again, the police can catch them quickly.
Odisha's R&DM department directed revenue officials in six districts to intensify vigilance against illegal cannabis cultivation on government land.
Additional Chief Secretary Arabinda Kumar Padhee wrote to district Collectors in a letter dated August 10.
Police destroyed illegal cannabis across 36,508.792 acres in 1,631 GPS-mapped plots under 41 police stations in the 2025-26 crop season.
Of the destroyed area, 6,632.197 acres were identified as government or revenue land.
Officials must monitor previously destroyed plots using GPS coordinates, as cultivators often reuse the same remote land each year.
- Who
- Odisha's Revenue and Disaster Management (R&DM) department, led by Additional Chief Secretary Arabinda Kumar Padhee, along with district Collectors and field revenue officials such as Tehsildars and Revenue Inspectors.
- What
- A directive to intensify vigilance and continuous surveillance against illegal cannabis (ganja) cultivation on government revenue land in six identified districts.
- Where
- Six districts of Odisha, India: Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Kandhamala, Boudh and Gajapati.
- When
- The directive is in a letter dated August 10, following the cannabis destruction drive of the 2025-26 crop season (November 2025 to March 2026) and as the 2026-27 crop season begins.
- Why
- To prevent people involved in illegal cannabis cultivation, especially in remote and inaccessible areas, from reusing the same government revenue land every year.
Key facts
- State
- Odisha, India
- Department
- Revenue and Disaster Management (R&DM)
- Key official
- Additional Chief Secretary Arabinda Kumar Padhee
- Districts covered
- Malkangiri, Koraput, Rayagada, Kandhamala, Boudh, Gajapati
- Cannabis destroyed (2025-26 season)
- 36,508.792 acres across 1,631 GPS-mapped plots under 41 police stations
- Government/revenue land destroyed
- 6,632.197 acres
- Previous crop season
- November 2025 to March 2026









