Speaking to The Indian Express on Thursday , a forest official said the department will meet the SSB and the police in April. The decision, which will be made official shortly, comes after the department in February intercepted over 10 tonnes of red sandalwood, bought from Andhra Pradesh, on the bordering Maharajganj district. On February 12, the driver was arrested and the truck seized at the Suhagiverva wildlife division, in Nichlaul range in Maharajganj. The truck was carrying sandal under ripe lemons.

The driver had a license of transporting lemons from Andhra Pradesh to Varanasi. He revealed that he was taking sandal to Nepal, from where it will be sold in the international market, particularly in China and Japan. The wood, best of its kind, would have fetched over Rs 100 crore, sources say.

"Since the route via Nepal is an easier option due to a lack of effective checking and security, the wood smugglers prefer to come all the way to Uttar Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have strict checking for sandalwood," a senior official said.

Sources reveal that such variety is in high demand in countries like China and Japan, where it is not just used for decorating doors and windows in religious establishments, but also in houses of the rich and the high-profile.

This is not the first incident. In May 2006, officials had caught a truck transporting sandal from the same route to Nepal. According to RK Singh, Divisional Forest Officer, Maharajganj division, there is no doubt about the fact that the route is being used by smugglers from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka on a large scale.

"We got information that a truck filled with lemons was illegally heading towards Nepal. The driver had the permit only till Varanasi. This alerted us, as lemons are not something which will be smuggled," Singh said.