Drugs worth Rs 10.80 crore seized in Mizoram, 4 held

AIZAWL: Despite stringent border vigilance, smuggling of drugs from Myanmar into Northeast India, the security forces seized drugs worth Rs 10.80 crore and arrested four drug peddlers in Mizoram, officials said here on Sunday.

A defence spokesman said that the Assam Rifles, along with the officials of the Excise and Narcotics Department, in a joint raid recovered highly addictive methamphetamine tablets weighing 3.33 kg and valued at Rs 9.99 crore on the Ngur-Bulfek road in Champhai district on Saturday night. The security personnel also arrested three smugglers who were carrying methamphetamine tablets, also known as Yaba or party tablets.

In another operation, paramilitary troops accompanied by the officials of the Excise and Narcotics Department recovered heroin weighing 116.81 grams worth Rs 81.76 lakh from Thingkah in the Lawngtlai district on Saturday. A drug peddler was also apprehended for illegally ferrying the drugs.

The apprehended drug peddlers and the recovered drugs, smuggled from Myanmar, have been handed over to the Excise and Narcotics Department for taking further legal action. Four days ago, the Assam Rifles and Mizoram Police in a joint operation also seized heroin and highly addictive methamphetamine tablets worth over Rs 7.64 crore and apprehended a drug smuggler at Zokhawthar in bordering Champhai district.

Although six Mizoram districts-Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Hnahthial, Saitual, and Serchhip-share a 510 km-long unfenced border with Myanmar's Chin state, mountainous Champhai district is the hotspot for smuggling of various drugs, arms and ammunition, and various other contrabands.

Various drugs, especially heroin and highly addictive methamphetamine tablets, are often smuggled into the northeastern states of India from Myanmar, which shares a 1,643 km-long unfenced border with four northeastern states-Arunachal Pradesh (520 km), Manipur (398 km), Nagaland (215 km), and Mizoram (510 km)). (IANS)

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