March 16, 2026 : In a serious case of illegal drug cultivation uncovered in Samoda village of Durg district, Chhattisgarh, Collector Abhijeet Singh has taken strict action against a government official. Rural Agriculture Extension Officer Ekta Sahu has been suspended with immediate effect for gross negligence and for allegedly misleading the government regarding crop records.
The action follows a preliminary investigation that exposed how opium was being illegally cultivated in a field while official records repeatedly described the land as a “maize demonstration plot.” Authorities had earlier suspected the role of officials from both the agriculture and revenue departments and issued notices asking them to submit explanations within seven days.
During the inquiry, officials discovered that the field where the opium crop was growing had been repeatedly recorded in departmental files as a maize demonstration plot. Investigators found that the agriculture extension officer allegedly altered the location of the field in official reports and falsely identified a paddy field as a maize field to secure government incentive funds.
Further irregularities surfaced when photographs uploaded to the government portal did not show the actual beneficiary farmer. Instead, another individual was reportedly made to stand in the field for the photographs, which were later submitted as official proof to claim incentives under government schemes.
The digital crop survey also raised serious questions. The crop surveyor reportedly marked the land parcels where opium was being cultivated as either fallow land or paddy fields in the digital records, effectively concealing the illegal crop.
Collector Abhijeet Singh described the incident as a case of fraud against the government and warned that no employee would be spared if found protecting or ignoring illegal cultivation of narcotic substances.
A detailed investigation into the matter is still underway. Officials indicated that further action could be taken against other staff members, including patwaris and revenue officers, if their involvement or negligence is established.
The administration is now trying to determine whether other influential individuals were involved in facilitating the illegal opium cultivation.
The controversy began after authorities discovered that large-scale opium cultivation was allegedly being carried out in a field belonging to BJP leader Vinayak Tamrakar and his brother in Samoda village. The crop was reportedly hidden behind maize cultivation to avoid suspicion.
Investigations revealed that Agriculture Extension Officer Ekta Sahu and crop surveyor Shashikant Sahu allegedly uploaded incorrect information on the government portal. During the digital survey process, the land parcels containing opium crops were deliberately recorded as fallow land or paddy fields to conceal the illegal activity.
Taking note of the seriousness of the case, the district administration suspended the agriculture officer and sought explanations from the concerned patwari and other officials.
The case has exposed not only illegal narcotics cultivation but also the misuse of government schemes through manipulated records, staged photographs, and misleading documentation submitted to official portals.
