TNI Bureau: In a surprising discovery, the Excise Department seized silver weighing over 1 quintal 10 kilograms and valued at more than Rs 1 crore in Odisha’s Sambalpur district on Thursday.

A team of the Excise Department during a routine inspection for ganja smuggling waylaid a Scorpio vehicle with registration number MH01EF 0549 at Tehsil Chowk near Rengali of the district.

While intercepting, to their surprise the excise officials spotted a huge quantity of silver in a specially designed secret chamber inside the vehicle and seized it.

The team also detained two persons from the Scorpio vehicle which was going towards Kolkata from Raipur. Their interrogation is underway to know the sources of the silver.

Meanwhile, a team of senior officials from the GST Department also reached the spot for further investigation into the matter.