Aizawl/Silchar, Feb 18 (IANS) The security personnel in Mizoram and Assam have seized highly addictive methamphetamine tablets valued at Rs 42 crore and arrested three drug peddlers including two Myanmar nationals during the past 24 hours, officials said on Tuesday.
A defence spokesman said that 9.298 kg of methamphetamine tablets, also known as Yaba or party tablets, valued at around Rs 27.90 crore have seized at Vangkai crossing point two in Mizoram’s Champhai district on Tuesday and apprehended two Myanmar nationals.
He said that the Assam Rifles in an intelligence-based information launched an operation and arrested Lalthangvela (28) and Zaithangpuia (26) and recovered the drugs.
The drug peddlers are residents of Khawmawi in Myanmar and they illegally entered Mizoram with the drugs through the porous Champhai district. The entire consignment and apprehended individuals were taken into custody by the Police Department, Zokhawthar for further investigation and legal proceedings.
In Assam, based on credible intelligence, Cachar district Police launched a special operation against the illegal transportation of narcotics substances on the Silchar-Aizawl road.
A police official in Silchar said that during the operation the Police team intercepted one Maruti Wagoner at Ramprasadpur, without a number plate and recovered 40,000 methamphetamine tablets concealed in the secret chambers and 23 soap cases containing 260 grams of suspected heroin. The price of the narcotics substance in the market is about Rs 14 crore.
The person involved in the illegal transportation Rakesh Kumar Sinha (24), a resident of Hatikhal village has been arrested. The suspected narcotics substance along with the vehicle were seized in the presence of independent witnesses following all formalities.
During preliminary investigation, it has come to light that the psychotropic substance has been illegally transported from Manipur’s Churachandpur.
Further legal action is being initiated.
Mizoram shares a 510 km-long unfenced border with Myanmar’s Chin state, which makes drug smuggling rampant through its six districts: Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Hnahthial, Saitual, and Serchhip. Myanmar, which shares a 1,643 km unfenced border with four northeastern states — Arunachal Pradesh (520 km), Manipur (398 km), Nagaland (215 km), and Mizoram (510 km) — serves as a key transit point for drugs, particularly heroin and methamphetamine tablets, entering India.
From the northeastern states, these drugs are further smuggled into Bangladesh, which shares a 1,880 km border with Tripura (856 km), Meghalaya (443 km), Mizoram (318 km), and Assam (263 km).
–IANS
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