Chandigarh: Unaccounted cash totalling about Rs 24 crore and drugs valued at over Rs 33 crore in the international market have been seized in poll-bound Punjab since the election schedule was announced last month, Special Chief Electoral Officer Usha R Sharma said on Monday.

The cash totalling Rs 23.7 crore has been handed over to the Income Tax Department which was making further investigations, she said here.

Punjab is going to polls on January 30 and the Model Code of Conduct came into force on December 24 with the announcement of the poll schedule.

Seizure of various kinds of drugs during the past three weeks has also been reported, Sharma said, pointing out that over 6.34 kg of heroin, valued at over Rs 33 crore in the international market, has been recovered from different places.

Some quantity of gold and silver, too, has been made, she said adding that 12 incidents of violence at different places have occurred in the run up to polls.

Bailable warrants against 8,103 persons have been executed and cases against 4,148 persons registered for various offences.

As many as 1,80,338 licenced weapons have been deposited so far and 36 arms and some ammunition seized from various places.

PTI