DRI seizes 4 bags containing opiate derivative/heroin with 395 kg at Piplav Port, Gujarat

A container is being checked by DRI at Pipavav port, Gujarat, in the presence of officers from ATS Gujarat, based on intelligence developed jointly by DRI and ATS Gujarat. ‘Thread’ was declared in the said container, which had a gross weight of 9,760 kg. In field testing conducted by the regional Forensic Science Laboratory on 28.04.2022, out of 100 jumbo bags, four suspicious bags containing threads with a total weight of 395 kg showed the presence of opiate derivative/Heroin.

The drug network appeared to have employed a one-of-a-kind method in which threads were soaked in a solution containing the narcotic drug heroin, then dried, fashioned into bales, and packaged in bags. These bags were transported with other bags containing bundles of ordinary threads in order to avoid detection by authorities. In this situation, the modus operandi would have necessitated the extraction of Heroin intermingled in the threads. DRI’s examination and seizure proceedings under the NDPS Act of 1985 are still ongoing.

The DRI has made significant seizures of drugs such as Heroin, Cocaine, Hashish, and psychotropic substances and precursors such as Methamphetamine and Pseudoephedrine in the year 2021. Between January and December 2021, almost 3,300 kilogrammes of Heroin, 320 kg of Cocaine, and 230 kg of Hashish were intercepted. During this time, 170 kg of pseudoephedrine and 67 kg of methamphetamine were also seized.

Consistent efforts have generated significant achievements since January 2022. Apart from the world-record seizures of 3,000 kg of Heroin from a consignment of Talc in September 2021 at Mundra Port and 205 kg of Heroin from a consignment of Gypsum in April 2022 at Kandla Port, DRI officers seized Heroin from cargo containers at the Tughlakabad container depot in February and March 2022. In the first case, 34.7 kg of Heroin was discovered in four containers labelled as containing Rock Salt, while 2.4 kilogramme of Heroin was discovered in the form of silt in a shipment of Pomegranate juice in the second case.

Syndicates have also attempted to cross the land borders of India with narcotics such as Yaba and Heroin from the Indo-Myanmar border and Hashish from the Indo-Nepal border. DRI officials have also intercepted similar shipments crossing these borders, which are sometimes cleverly hidden inside cars. In February 2022, DRI confiscated one lakh Yaba (Methamphetamine) tablets and several seizures of Heroin smuggled into India from Myanmar in North-East India.

The number of air travelers arriving in India has grown as limitations placed as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak have been lifted and international air traffic has reopened. DRI has seen many occurrences of Heroin seizure in baggage and in the form of pills eaten by body carriers in the recent two months. In one big case, DRI discovered 16 kg of Heroin hidden in the luggage of three travelers arriving at Kolkata airport in March 2022.

The DRI has recently been involved in a number of cases, including the seizure of 4.4 kg, 5.9 kg, and 8.4 kg Heroin in three separate seizures in Ahmedabad, 2.2 kg, 1.7 kg, and 2.25 kg Heroin in the form of ingested capsules in three separate seizures in New Delhi, seizure of 3.2 kg Heroin in Hyderabad, and seizure of 4 kg and 7.9 kg Heroin in two separate cases in Chennai. DRI has also recorded three incidences in the recent two months involving the seizure of 3.7 kg of Cocaine in the form of consumed capsules from passengers entering in India. Apart from this, the Airport Customs has booked a number of cases based on particular information provided by the DRI, including the seizure of about 17.90 kg Heroin at IGI Airport on April 10, 2022, which was being carried by a serving Kenyan government officer.

Air travelers are increasingly attempting to trick DRI officers by a variety of methods, including laminating Heroin neatly into their luggage, which is practically imperceptible to the human eye. Ingenious concealing strategies have also been reported, such as the usage of shampoos and food items to hide Heroin. The most difficult situations are those in which air passengers are used as body carriers, ingesting laminated illicit tablets to smuggle them into India, which not only necessitates a high level of intelligence work to accurately identify such carriers, but also poses a risk to the carrier’s life.