Drugs valued at Rs 87.84 crore seized in Mizoram

Aizawl, Sep 13 (IANS) In one of the largest-ever seizures in Mizoram this year, Assam Rifles troopers seized drugs worth Rs 87.84 crores from Champhai district on Wednesday, officials said.

Defence officials said that the para-military jawans recovered two lakh highly addictive Methamphetamine tablets worth Rs 60 crore and 3.978 kg heroin valued at Rs 27.84 crore from an abandoned house along World Bank road in Zokhawthar to Melbuk in Champhai district, bordering Myanmar.

The seized drugs, smuggled from Myanmar, have been handed over to Zokhawthar police station for further legal proceedings.

"Ongoing smuggling of contraband items is a major cause of concern for the state of Mizoram and India. Assam Rifles have continued their efforts against illegal smuggling and have also doubled their efforts to nab the kingpins of the Narco-Cartel in Mizoram," a statement said.

In another incident, the Assam Rifles and the Mizoram Police, in a joint raid, seized 1,800 bullets of AK-47 rifles from three persons, including two Myanmar nationals, in Siaha district on Tuesday.

Smuggling of drugs from Myanmar and their peddling through various northeastern states have increased in the recent past with various drugs valued at Rs 142 crore seized in Mizoram, Tripura, Meghalaya during the past two weeks and 20 drug peddlers, including a few Myanmar nationals, arrested, officials said.

Tripura's 856 km border with Bangladesh and Mizoram's 510 km and Manipur’s 400 km unfenced frontier with Myanmar have become an easy corridor for drugs smuggling in northeast India. Besides various illicit drugs, foreign cigarettes, gold, arms and ammunition, exotic animals, and areca nuts are often smuggled from Myanmar into the northeastern states.

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