Rs 24 crore heroin haul leads cops to new drug route via Myanmar

NEW DELHI: After the haul of heroin worth Rs 24 crore, the Special Cell of Delhi Police has stumbled on the details of the new route through which heroin is being pumped into the country from Myanmar. After being manufactured and packed in the Golden Triangle — Laos, Myanmar and Thailand — the drug is being transported through areas like Mandalay and Bhamo in north-east Myanmar and in to India from Moreh in Manipur.
The cops said a large number of trucks running on National Highway 2 and bound for the capital carry the drug in secret cavities.Due to competitive pricing and superior quality, heroin from Myanmar is sought after by consumers.

Pramod Kushwaha, DCP (Special Cell), confirmed on Monday that in its latest operation, the cell arrested three smugglers, Taibali from Manipur and Islamuddin and Shohidur Rahman from Assam, with 6kg of heroin. On questioning, the trio spilled the beans on the operations of their cartel.
“A team led by ACP Attar Singh and inspector Shiv Kumar learnt the suspects would come to Indraprastha Park on Ring Road. Taibali arrived with the bag of drugs and was handing over to the two others when they were nabbed,” said Kushwaha.
Taibali apparently told police that he had been transporting drugs for a decade and got a commission for bringing consignments to Deli and supplying them to some African-origin distributors. He had supplied more than 150kg of heroin to city peddlers in an operation that is headed by a person based in Manipur.
“The kingpin in Manipur has links with drug suppliers in Myanmar and he receives huge consignments of heroin from that country,” Kushwaha said, adding, “There also is widespread illegal cultivation of opium in Manipur’s border areas that is turned into opium and then into heroin.
The cops pointed out a perceptible change in the pattern of how heroin comes to India in the last few years. “Supply from Myanmar and Manipur has shot up due to better quality and lesser costs, dampening the demand of heroin produced in the traditional areas of Bareilly, Badaun, Barabanki, etc, in UP, Jhalawar in Rajasthan and Mandsore in MP,” said Kushwaha.
The crackdown on the Afghanistan-Pakistan-India route has also made smuggler look at the porous borders and difficult terrain in the Northeast areas, turning the region into a safe haven for drugs. A few years ago, the government had considered creating a 10-kilometre fence there to deter drug smugglers.