Drugs seized in Indian waters worth Rs 25,000 cr, confirms NCB

After enumeration, the value of narcotics seized in a special operation conducted by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the Indian Navy in Indian seas on Saturday was estimated to be Rs 25,000 crores, according to NCB on Monday.

The enumeration of the high-purity methamphetamine recovered by the NCB and the Indian Navy has been finished, according to NCB authorities. According to official information acquired from the NCB, the entire seizure is 2,525 kilogrammes and is valued at 25,000 crore rupees. The enumeration was finished in 23 hours, according to the officials.

“The value became higher because it is higher grade methamphetamine. The seized drugs were in 134 sacks. The methamphetamine was kept in packets of one kilo each”, one of the officials said.
One suspected Pakistani national was already arrested in this regard. He will be produced before the Court today evening, informed the NCB officials.
On Saturday, NCB seized approximately 2,500 kg of contraband drugs in Indian waters in a special operation.
Sanjay Kumar Singh, Deputy Director General (Ops) said it was the largest in terms of monetary value.
Talking to ANI, Singh said, “NCB & Navy conducted a successful operation in the Indian Ocean. It is the largest in terms of its monetary value. It originated from the Chabahar port in Iran. The source of the drugs is Pakistan.”

Singh further said that the consignment was meant for Sri Lanka, Maldives and India.
“The mother ship was being stationed at different points in the sea. The smaller boats would go from various countries & collect consignments from the mother ships. The consignment was meant for Sri Lanka, Maldives and India. One Pakistani national has been arrested”, he said.

He added that the operation was started in February last year and as part of the operation, the team has seized roughly around 4,000 kg of various drugs.

“We started Operation Samudragupta in February 2022 as part of that operation we have seized roughly around 4,000 kg of various drugs”, Singh said.

The first success of the ‘Samudragupta’ operation was achieved in February 2022, when a joint team of NCB and Indian Navy seized 529 kg of hashish, 221 kg of methamphetamine, and 13 kg of heroin in the high seas off the coast of Gujarat, all originating in Balochistan and Afghanistan.
The seizure was part of “Operation Samudragupta,” which targeted the marine trafficking of narcotics from Afghanistan.

Recognising the threat to national security posed by the maritime trafficking of heroin and other drugs through the Indian Ocean region, the Director General of the NCB launched Operation Samudragupta in January 2022, led by Sanjay Kumar Singh, Deputy Director General (Ops), and comprised of officers from the NCB Headquarters’ Operations Branch.

The primary objective of the operation was to collect actionable inputs which could lead to the interdiction of ships carrying narcotics contraband.

For this task, the team exchanged and gathered information from drug law enforcement agencies such as DRI, ATS Gujarat and intelligence agencies such as the Intelligence Wing of Indian Navy, NTRO etc.