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Drug Trafficking Through Meghalaya on the Rise Amid Manipur Unrest: Union Minister
By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Sep 23: Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, revealed on Monday that the current ethnic turmoil in Manipur has led drug cartels to exploit the Meghalaya route for smuggling methamphetamine and heroin/morphine into various parts of India. This route spans from Jiribam to Meghalaya, onwards to Assam and beyond.
Addressing a petition from Tura MP Saleng Sangma, who alleged high-profile involvement in the state’s illicit drug trade, Rai confirmed that Meghalaya is a known transit channel for smuggling ganja from Tripura and codeine-based cough syrup (CBC) from other parts of India to Tripura and onto Bangladesh.
Rai also clarified that the smuggling of sugar and betel nut (areca nut) does not fall under the Ministry of Home Affairs/NDPS Act’s jurisdiction, and no connection to drug smuggling has been observed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB). Despite this, coordinated efforts by the NCB and other drug law enforcement agencies have led to significant seizures and arrests, effectively disrupting drug supply chains in the region.
Highlighting recent operations, Rai pointed to a notable bust in Silchar where the NCB’s Guwahati zonal unit seized 6.790 kg of methamphetamine tablets from a car destined for Cooch Behar via Shillong. To bolster efforts against drug trafficking in the Northeast, two new NCB zonal units have been established in Agartala and Itanagar, alongside an upgrade for the Imphal sub-zonal unit to a full zonal unit.
Additionally, a regional office under the Deputy Director General (NER), NCB has been set up in Guwahati to oversee regional operations. The NCORD (Narco Coordination Centre) mechanism has also been reinforced with extensive stakeholder coordination, culminating in 30 state-level and 805 district-level meetings from 2020-24. In Meghalaya alone, four state-level and seven district-level meetings were conducted, further supported by three state-level joint coordination committee meetings across the Northeast to evaluate major NDPS cases.
Rai emphasized that these measures are designed to enhance agency cooperation and community safety, aiming to curb the region’s drug trafficking menace effectively.
Original Story https://theshillongtimes.com/2024/09/24/the-newly-renvovated-terminal-of-the-umroi-airport-with-a-total-new-look-on-tuesday/
Category : MEGHALAYA
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