more-in Excise sleuths here on Sunday foiled an attempt to smuggle drugs to Kochi, and arrested a 29-year-old with ganja and magic mushrooms. The arrested has been identified as Muthukumar, a native of Devikulam in Idukki. Acting on a tip-off, the sleuths arrested him from a location near the KSRTC bus stand. During an inspection, they recovered 40 mushrooms and half a kilogram of ganja from his possession. Massive cultivation According to officials, the contraband was being cultivated on a massive scale in forests in Tamil Nadu and at Munnar in Kerala. The accused used to sell the contraband at rates as high as ?2,000 per mushroom. The sleuths are now on the lookout for the source and destination of the smuggled goods. Growing popularity The officers said psilocybin mushrooms and gymnopilus mushrooms, nicknamed magic mushrooms, are usually used to achieve euphoria. The popularity of the mushrooms, reportedly grown in the wilds of the Nilgiris, is growing among the well-heeled urban youth in such a way that it has begun replacing high-end party drugs such as meth, LSD and cocaine.

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