Seven red sanders smugglers held

​Chittoor: Smuggling of red sanders seems to be going on unabated in Chittoor district despite police and task force personnel initiating number of measures to curb illegal menace. The Chittoor police arrested seven red sanders smugglers and seized two vehicles along with 89 red sanders logs according to District Superintendent of G Srinivas. Combing operations would be intensified extensively to curtail the red sanders smuggling in the district in a big way, he added.

Addressing press persons, here on Wednesday, the SP said that Palamaner DSP Sankar and Circle Inspectors of Kuppam and Gangavaram police station in Palamaner division made strenuous efforts to nab the red sanders smugglers. The police arrested P R Subramanayam ( (43) an inter-state red sanders smuggler, resident of Namakkal district, Tamil Nadu who exported more than 100 tonnes of red sanders logs and earned over Rs 6 crore. He was in the red sanders smuggling activity from 2003 onwards and established connections with red sanders smugglers of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh .

The second kingpin of red sanders smuggling was K Mani, another inter-state smugglers and resident of Namakkal district of Tamil Nadu who has exported over 100 tonnes of red sanders during the few last years. The Chittoor Police have booked a case against him under PD Act since he was involved in 12 cases and whose monthly income crossed over Rs 20 lakh, the SP added.

The other five red sanders smugglers are the followers of the two inter-state red sanders smugglers like Balasubramanyan and Mani SP said . A reward would be presented to Palamaner DSP Sankar and his team the SP declared. Chittoor ASP Abhishek Mahathi, Red Sanders Task Force DSP Giridhar and others were present.