DRI Seizes 231.8 kg of Meth in Assam and Tripura, Three Arrested
The DRI seized 231.8 kg of suspected methamphetamine tablets from four trucks in Assam and Tripura on 15 September, arresting three people.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has seized 231.8 kg of suspected methamphetamine tablets from four trucks intercepted in Assam and Tripura, in what ranks among its largest such hauls in the northeast.
According to a finance ministry statement issued on Wednesday, the operation was carried out on 15 September. Three people were arrested and the four vehicles used to move the contraband were seized.
The agency said it acted on specific intelligence, placing suspected vehicles under surveillance before intercepting them simultaneously at multiple locations across the two states. The Assam Rifles assisted in the interceptions.
The DRI said the consignment's illicit street value runs into several hundred crore rupees.
The seizure follows two operations in August, near Silchar and in Mizoram, in which the agency recovered a combined 76 kg of methamphetamine tablets. Those drugs were also hidden in vehicles. Together, the August and September operations add up to at least 307.8 kg of methamphetamine tablets seized in the region, going by government releases.
A vulnerable corridor
Central agencies have long flagged the northeast as exposed to synthetic-drug trafficking. The home affairs ministry has cited the region's proximity to Myanmar as a contributing factor. Myanmar shares borders with four northeastern states — Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram — opening up multiple routes for narcotics to be smuggled into India.
Methamphetamine is regulated under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, which provides stringent penalties for offences involving illegal substances, with punishment determined by the quantity involved, among other factors.