Ludhiana, Dec. 22 -- With the seizure of 49.5-kg poppy husk, the recovery this year has increased sevenfold at the Ludhiana railway station, officials said. Last year, 7.14-kg poppy husk had been recovered.

The recovery of banned pills, including anti-anxiety medication alprazolam, and painkillers like Tramadol and Lomotil, which can only be procured with a proper medical prescription, has shot up from 530 to 9,200. The seizure of ganja also increased from 24 kg to 34.5 kg this year.

However, opium recovery decreased to 33.3 kg from 59 last year. This year, no recoveries were made for charas against last year's 22.5 kg recovery. The biggest single recovery was a tranche of 16 kg of opium caught on May 15, which, according to the GRP, wa...