Dec 18, Kathmandu - Police have seized 1,800 sacks of betel nuts worth around Rs 47.74 crore from Birgunj on suspicion of being imported through revenue evasion. The police seized 1,800 sacks of betel nuts on Thursday from the warehouse of Nishant Ronawat's industry on Birgunj Metropolitan City-2 Bypass Road and two container vehicles in front of the warehouse.

The amount of betel nut imported from a third country through the Birgunj customs checkpoint was seized by police during a raid while it was being unloaded from a container and stored in a warehouse in Birgunj, Parsa Superintendent of Police Sudip Raj Pathak said.

A team led by Superintendent of Police Pathak seized 900 sacks of betel nuts from container vehicles (Na 7 Kha 7420 and Na 4 Kha 6832) parked in front of the warehouse and 900 sacks stored inside the warehouse. The drivers of both the container vehicles, Ram Bharos Mahara, 41, of Jitpur Simara Sub-metropolitan City-20 of Bara, and Ram Prasad Yadav, 51, of Ward No. 19 of Jitpur Simara Sub-metropolitan City, were also taken into custody by the police, Superintendent of Police Pathak informed.