Kolkata, Dec 29 (IANS): Two women operators from a notorious narcotics smuggling racket based out of northeastern India have been nabbed by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) at Malda Station in the northern sector of West Bengal on Friday.

The two women were arrested at Malda station from Kolkata-bound train coming from Assam. Around eight kilograms of high quality cannabis were seized from their possessions.

The RPF is yet to disclose the identities of the two arrested women.

Sources said that the duo has admitted that they hail from Tripura from where the cannabis consignment was actually sourced. The two women brought that consignment from Agartala to Assam where the consignment was carefully packed in flavoured tea- packets.

The two women were supposed to carry those from Assam to Kolkata and hand over to their local agents here. However, sources said, being tipped off from their sources about the cannabis consignment being brought to Kolkata, the RPF raided a compartment of the train when it arrived at Malda station seizing the flavoured tea-packets, where the cannabis consignment was present.

The cops are trying to get the names of the local agents or peddlers who they were supposed to pass on the consignment.

Meanwhile, an official of Kolkata Police said that during this part of the year, the number of narcotics consignments coming to the city increases due to the high demand in the late-night parties that continue till the New Year.

“Every year, the seizures of such smuggled consignments are more frequent during this period,” a city police official said.