Manipur Police have intercepted a significant drug trafficking attempt, seizing methamphetamine tablets valued at over Rs 22 crore and arresting a truck driver involved in the incident.
According to officials, the police stopped a truck at the New Keithelmanbi Police picket in Imphal West District on Friday night. During a search, they discovered large quantities of drugs concealed within the roof of the vehicle.
Sample testing confirmed the contraband as methamphetamine tablets, commonly known as Yaba or party pills.
The driver, identified as Nawaj Sharif (34), a resident of Thoubal District, was arrested at the scene. The authorities recovered approximately 57.285 kilograms of methamphetamine tablets, with an estimated street value of Rs 22 crore.
In a related operation last week, a joint team comprising the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Customs, Assam Rifles, and Manipur Police seized 7,755.75 grams of heroin worth Rs 54.29 crore and 6,736 grams of opium valued at Rs 87.57 lakh from a residence in Churachandpur district’s Thadou Veng area. Cash totaling Rs 35.63 lakh, along with two walkie-talkies and one vehicle, was also confiscated during the operation.
The drugs were found stored in soap cases and small tins and are believed to have been smuggled into the area from Myanmar through the porous, forested India-Myanmar border.
Preliminary investigations suggest that the consignment was headed into the bordering regions of Churachandpur from Myanmar, highlighting the challenges faced by law enforcement agencies in controlling cross-border drug trafficking.
Despite these difficulties, coordinated efforts by multiple agencies have resulted in successful operations. An official statement underlined that under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, offenders face stringent punishments, including rigorous imprisonment for up to ten years.
Historically, large quantities of narcotics have been seized from Churachandpur, which shares an unfenced border with Myanmar and Mizoram. Myanmar’s extensive 1,643 km unfenced border with northeastern states such as Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, and Mizoram continues to serve as a major transit route for illicit drugs, particularly heroin and methamphetamine tablets entering India.