Angul: The district administration has chalked out its strategy to tackle the menace of ganja cultivation that is rapidly spreading to new areas in the industrial district.

Angul is one of the few districts in the state where ganja cultivation is rampant despite frequent crackdowns.

District collector Anil Kumar Samal expressed his resolve to stamp out ganja cultivation and trade from the district: "We have chalked out many strategies along with police and excise and forest department officials to wipe out the cultivation and trade in the district. Accordingly, there will be more operations in the coming weeks to destroy the plantations."

A team of officials from the forest, revenue and excise departments, and the police, had destroyed plantations over 112 acres in 2016-17. This year, they have only managed 38 acres.

The cultivation, which was restricted to six police station limits, has spread to another this year, according to excise superintendent Harish Chandra Sethi.

They have set target to destroy cultivations on 200 acres.

"In Friday's meeting, the collector directed the district panchayat officer to ask respective sarpanchs to furnish details of land where cultivation has been raised. Similarly, divisional forest officers of Angul, Athmallick and Satkosia were also directed to collect information from their range officers and others about cultivations," Sethi said.

According to excise officials, ganja is cultivated in areas such as Chhendipada, Rengali, Nisha, Kishorenagar, Jarapara, Handappa and Purunakorte police limits. However, now it has also spread to Talcher, Athmallick and Pallahara.

Sethi said ganja raised in the district was being routed to several destinations in and outside the state, including Uttar Pradesh and other northern states.