In a renewed effort to combat narcotics smuggling, police apprehended five passengers on an interstate bus traveling from Dharmanagar to Silchar on Tuesday evening, seizing a substantial quantity of cannabis.

The bus was intercepted and searched by a police team led by Officer-in-Charge (OC) Samaresh Das near the Churaibari police station at the Tripura border.

Officer Das informed ANI, "During the search operation, we discovered multiple small packets of cannabis with five passengers from Bihar. The confiscated cannabis weighs a total of seven kilograms and has an estimated black market value of approximately one lakh rupees."

The arrested individuals include a woman identified as Shivani Rani (24) and four men: Bhullu Singh (28), Amar Nath (35), Satyaranjan Goin (43) and Bhullu Kumar (29). All detainees are residents of Vaishali district in Bihar.

A case was registered against the five under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. Shivani Rani was transferred to Dharmanagar Women's Police Station on Tuesday night, while the four male detainees are set to appear in court on Wednesday, according to Das.