One tonne red sanders worth Rs 45L seized in Sholavaram

According to the sources, police got a tip off on Wednesday that Nagaraj (47), a resident of Mosque Street in Sholavaram, had stored a large quantity of redsanders in his office.

“Later a police team reached the Nagaraj’s office and it on Wednesday, which led to the seizure of one tonne of the wood,” a police official said.

The police have launched a search for Nagaraj, who went into hiding even as police was conducting the raid.

For the past six months, the Tiruvallur district police have seized several tonnes of red sanders that were smuggled mostly from Andhra Pradesh into Tamil Nadu. Police said that at least 18 tonnes of the wood worth more than Rs 9 crore had been seized since the beginning of the year. Even last month, a huge consignment that was being transported from Andhra Pradesh was seized.

“Over the years, we have built a good network of sources as a result of which we are able to keep a constant check on red sanders smuggling,” a police official said.