Friday, 17 May, 2024
The Narcotic Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act) of 1985 was enacted to combat drug misuse by prohibiting the use, distribution, manufacturing, and trade of drugs. Image Source: Press Information Bureau
The operation was initiated by the authorities utilising information obtained from a surveillance aircraft. The suspicious boat was seized by an Indian Navy ship that had been at sea for two days when it entered Indian territorial seas.
The Indian Navy and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) intercepted a suspected vessel carrying about 3300 kg of contraband (3089 kg charas, 158 kg of methamphetamine, and 25 kg of morphine) in a coordinated maritime operation. A mission-deployed IN destroyer was sent into action to intercept a suspicious dhow that was making its way into Indian seas carrying a sizable amount of contraband. This action was taken based on intelligence gathered from the Indian Navy's maritime surveillance aircraft, which was confirmed with findings from the NCB. The suspect boat was successfully spotted, followed, and intercepted by IN troops at sea.
The Boarding Operations on the dhow resulted in the largest seizure of narcotics, in quantity, in recent times. The IN warship then towed the boat to the closest Indian port so that the crew and contraband could be turned over to the law enforcement authorities. This operation is noteworthy for the amount and value of contraband that was seized, as well as for demonstrating the joint efforts of the Indian Navy and the NCB to obstruct the routes used to smuggle illegal drugs, which originate on the Makran coast and travel to several IOR nations.
In relation to the seizure, five foreign nationals on board the boat have been placed under custody. Despite the lack of legal documentation proving their nationality, they are thought to be either Iranian or Pakistani citizens. The operation was initiated by the authorities utilising information obtained from a surveillance aircraft. The suspicious boat was seized by an Indian Navy ship that had been at sea for two days when it entered Indian territorial seas.
The purpose of the investigation is to learn more about the crew members who have been detained and to dissect the smuggling operation's network. The goal of the authorities is to stop the flow of drugs into the area and expose drug trafficking activities in the area.
In recent years, there has been an exponential rise in the drug seizures in India. The reason behind this can be attributed to the rise in smuggling activities. The chart below shows the number of cases registered in last five years under the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic substances (NDPS) act and the drugs in possession for trafficking.
Source: National Crime Records Bureau
The number of cases under the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) act has been rapidly increasing over the years. In the year 2017, 63,800 cases were registered under the act which increased to 72, 721 in 2019. 2020 was the only year which witnessed a dip in cases due to the covid-19 pandemic. 59,806 cases were registered in 2020 but in the next year, the number of cases under the NDPS act jumped to 78,331. The number of cases registered under the NDPS act reached an all-time high in the year 2022 with 1,15,236 cases being registered in a single year. The Narcotic Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act) of 1985 was enacted to combat drug misuse by prohibiting the use, distribution, manufacturing, and trade of drugs. The instances of possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking were reported at 22,744 in 2017. This number increased by around ten thousand to 32,302 in the year 2021.
The lowest numbers of cases were registered in 2018. This tells that the covid-19 pandemic didn’t affect the possession of drugs for trafficking in a serious manner. The rising number of cases under the NDPS act and the cases of drugs trafficking is a major concern for the nation. The most prone category of people to the drugs is ‘youth’ as they are an easy target for the peddlers. Though various government agencies are working effectively to counter the drugs smuggling and trafficking, more needs to be done in this regard.
Recently, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) confiscated 15,000 LSD drug blots in the largest drug bust in the past two decades and detained six suspects who were reportedly connected to a pan-Indian drug trafficking network. They were using the dark web and cryptocurrencies to do their business. Drug abusers have a high demand for the synthetic chemical-based hallucinogen known as LSD, also known as lysergic acid diethylamide.
The NCB dismantled a drug trafficking network that had operations in the Netherlands, Poland, the United States, and several Indian states, including Delhi, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh. Additionally, 2.5 kilogram of imported marijuana and Rs 2.4 million (about $29,000) in cash had been seized by NCB officials. According to the NCB Deputy DG, LSD is highly popular among young people, and those who were discovered in the network are educated and youthful.
Article 47 of the Indian Constitution under Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP), which direct the State to work towards the prohibition of the consumption of intoxicating drugs harmful to health other than for medicinal purposes, serve as the foundation for the National Policy on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. The international conventions on the topic also serve as a reference for the government's policy, which is derived from this constitutional provision.
Last year in May 2023, the NCB along with the Indian Navy seized 2,500 kg “high-purity methamphetamine”, estimated to be worth Rs 12,000 crore in the illegal drugs market, from Indian waters and detained a suspected Pakistani national. The "Death Crescent," which consists of Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan, was the source of the methamphetamine that authorities recovered, according to the NCB. According to the agency, this was the first time an Indian agency had stopped a "mother ship" carrying drugs.
The government has been taking a number of steps to stop drugs smuggling and other anti-social activities related to narcotics but data and instances of drug seizures in large quantities shows that more needs to be done in this regard and we as responsible citizens should also remain vigilant and cooperate with law enforcement agencies.
