New Delhi, April 2 (). The problem of drug trafficking in India has increased due to its proximity to the Golden Triangle and the Golden Crescent. Drug consumption in India has increased by 70 percent in the last few years.
The Golden Triangle refers to the region where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet at the confluence of the Ruak and Mekong rivers. Myanmar is the world’s second largest illegal supplier of morphine and heroin, producing 80 percent of the world’s heroin, which is smuggled to the US, UK and China via sea routes through Laos, Vietnam, Thailand and India.
According to sources, Guwahati and Dimapur have witnessed the recovery of huge amount of heroin. Heroin and meth from Myanmar are smuggled into India through two entry points, Moreh in Manipur and Champai in Mizoram.
Interestingly, chemicals such as ephedrine, acetic anhydride and pseudoephedrine are sourced from South India, including Chennai, and then transported via Delhi to Kolkata and Guwahati before being smuggled across the Myanmar border.
With the Government of India and Myanmar signing an MoU to combat drug trafficking in 2020, the Indian authorities have stepped up their efforts to curb drug trafficking in the region.
However, according to the annual report of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) released in 2022, drug trafficking through sea routes in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal accounts for about 70 per cent of the illegal drugs trafficked into India, which is a major There is danger. significant challenge for law enforcement agencies.
A senior NCB official said, the sea routes used by international drug syndicates based in Pakistan and Afghanistan are expected to increase.
The NCB report also states that most of the heroin is smuggled through the sea route, while marijuana, cocaine and other drugs are also seized.
The Golden Crescent, on the other hand, is a major global opium production site in Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan, from where the drugs are smuggled into India via Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Drug traffickers have created potential market and supply chain catalysts for hashish and heroin through these routes. Syndicates in these border areas are now using new digital tools and drones to smuggle drugs.
One of the key drugs, Heroin, is originally sourced from Afghanistan through Golden Crescent and Golden Triangle, said a senior NCB official. India’s geographical location is like a sandwich between the two. making it an ideal route for transporting heroin. It infiltrates the country through international, land and sea borders, with the western international border with Pakistan being a focal point.
In addition, syndicates now use courier, parcel and postal services to smuggle drugs and distribute them. The increasing use of courier or postal services is directly linked to the increase in dark web activity in India.
The quantity of drugs in a parcel is usually limited to a few grams to avoid suspicion and interception by law enforcement agencies.
The Government of India has intensified its efforts to curb drug trafficking in the region by conducting regular anti-drug operations along the borders with the Border Security Force and other law enforcement agencies.
The drug trade in these regions has significant implications for India’s security and well-being. Drug addiction has detrimental effects on individuals’ physical and mental health, and drug trafficking often fuels violent crime and corruption.
It also has destabilizing effects on countries and regions. Drug traffickers often use their profits to fund terrorist activities.
Efforts to combat drug trafficking in these regions have been ongoing for many years, with the Indian government and international organizations working together to disrupt drug trafficking networks.
These efforts include measures such as drug interdiction operations, improving border security, and providing drug treatment and rehabilitation services to those struggling with addiction.
While the drug trade continues to flourish in these areas, traffickers evade law enforcement efforts and find new ways to smuggle drugs.
A multi-pronged approach is needed, which not only focuses on law enforcement, but also addresses the underlying social and economic factors that contribute to drugs production and trafficking, said Gurmeet Nehra, research scholar at the Indian Law Institute. We do.
Last year, the NCB arrested 22 persons, including a software engineer, a financial analyst, an MBA and one of their own personnel, who were part of a pan-India drugs smuggling network using the darknet.
The above arrests, after a four-month operation in Delhi-NCR, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Assam, Punjab, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Rajasthan, have brought down three major online drug peddlers, DNM India, Dread and Orient Express. Turnt up.
They were supplying LSD blots, psychotropic tablets, heroin, cannabis in paste and liquid form, cocaine, alprazolam tablets, charas, foreign ganja etc. through couriers and India Post from countries like America, Britain, Netherlands, Poland etc.
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