Cachar, Sep 9 (IANS) : The security forces, in two major crackdowns on narcotics trafficking networks in Southern Assam’s Cachar district, have seized highly addictive methamphetamine tablets valued at over Rs 68 crore and arrested two drug peddlers, officials said on Wednesday.
A defence spokesman said that in a major crackdown against inter-state narcotics trafficking, the Assam Rifles, in a joint operation with the Customs Department and Assam Police, intercepted a truck near Lalpani in Cachar district on Tuesday night. Taking advantage of darkness, the driver attempted to pass through the area without being intercepted.
However, the vigilant joint team intercepted the vehicle and recovered around 1,50,000 methamphetamine tablets, with an estimated market value of Rs 45 crore. One Tata truck and a mobile handset were also seized during the operation. The driver of the truck, who was allegedly involved in drug peddling, was apprehended during the operation.
The apprehended individual and the recovered items were handed over to the Customs Department for further investigation and legal proceedings under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.
The successful operation showcased strong inter-agency synergy, vigilance and close coordination among the Assam Rifles, the Customs Department and the state Police, delivering a significant blow to networks involved in inter-state narcotics trafficking, an official statement said.
It said that the seizure further reaffirmed the unwavering commitment of the joint forces to disrupting illicit drug supply chains and safeguarding communities from the menace of narcotics. In the second operation, based on specific source inputs, the Assam Police conducted an anti-narcotics operation at Shivpur under Lakhipur police station in Cachar district.
During the operation, the police intercepted a truck, leading to the recovery of 2,30,000 methamphetamine tablets weighing around 25 kg from a secret chamber of the vehicle. The alleged drug peddler-cum-driver, identified as Sahir Hussain Choudhary, a resident of Cachar district, was also arrested.
The methamphetamine tablets, also known as Yaba or “party” tablets, contain a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine and are misused as high-dosage drugs in Bangladesh and neighbouring countries, besides India. Various types of cough syrups containing codeine phosphate are also commonly misused and illegally smuggled into Bangladesh.
Police officials suspect that the drugs, which are banned in India, were smuggled from Myanmar, which shares a 1,643-km-long international border with four Northeastern states — Arunachal Pradesh (520 km), Manipur (398 km), Nagaland (215 km) and Mizoram (510 km). Substantial stretches of the international border remain unfenced, making the region vulnerable to cross-border trafficking of drugs, particularly heroin and methamphetamine tablets.
Notably, Manipur and Mizoram have emerged as major drug-trafficking corridors in the North-East due to their long and porous international borders with Myanmar and their proximity to the Golden Triangle, one of the world’s major illicit narcotics-producing regions.
