NCB busts Myanmar–Manipur cartel in Cachar, nets Rs 12.5 cr heroin, two held

Guwahati, Dec 2: In a major strike on an international drug cartel, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB,) on Tuesday, seized high-grade heroin worth Rs 12.5 crore at Fulertal in Lakhipur, Cachar, intercepting a riverine consignment trafficked from Myanmar.

Officials described the action as a significant breakthrough that has effectively disrupted a drug network operating across the Myanmar–Manipur–Assam corridor.

According to a senior NCB official, the operation unfolded on December 1 when NCB Guwahati intercepted an indigenous motorboat on the Barak river and apprehended two individuals, both residents of Cachar district.

Acting on intelligence developed over several months, the NCB’s Guwahati Zonal Unit, working jointly with the CRPF and Assam Police, tracked the illicit consignment as it moved through dense forest routes in Manipur before being ferried along the Barak River in small motorboats to evade routine security checks.

A detailed search of the machine-operated country boat yielded 6.149 kg of high-grade heroin concealed inside 530 soap cases, hidden beneath bamboo layers to avoid detection.

Preliminary investigation suggests the consignment originated in Myanmar and was headed towards the Hmarkhawlien–Fulertal–Lakhipur belt in southern Assam.

“The traffickers used riverine routes specifically to bypass urban surveillance, police checkpoints and security camps. This operation highlights a growing trend of exploiting vulnerable river systems for cross-border drug movement,” the NCB official noted.

The NCB’s North Eastern Region unit has intensified coordination with Drug Law Enforcement Agencies (DLEAs), state police forces and central armed police and border-guarding units to strengthen interdiction efforts.

Senior officials said state-level Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) meetings have recently been held in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Meghalaya and Tripura to curb trafficking across the region.

PTI