BHOPAL: Continuing its crackdown on narcotics smuggling, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested a Ugandan woman from a Mumbai-bound train at Bhopal railway station, seizing drugs worth ₹2.2 crore.
Acting on its own intelligence inputs, DRI officials tracked and apprehended the Ugandan woman, who was travelling from Delhi to Mumbai, at Bhopal Junction on Thursday. The woman was located in one of the air-conditioned coaches of the long-distance train.
A thorough search operation was conducted, which led to the recovery of four white plastic packets containing 368.9 grams of crystalline methamphetamine and two packets containing 147.4 grams of cocaine. The substances tested positive for methamphetamine and cocaine using the NDPS Field Test Kit, as confirmed by the DRI's official statement.
The seized drugs, valued at over ₹2.2 crore in the international market, were confiscated under the provisions of the NDPS Act, 1985. The Ugandan national was arrested, and investigations are underway to uncover the trafficking network behind the operation.
The drugs were reportedly intended for delivery in Mumbai.
This operation marks the third significant narcotics bust by the DRI in Madhya Pradesh within the past 12 days. Earlier, on August 16, DRI officials, in coordination with law enforcement agencies from multiple states, dismantled an inter-state Mephedrone production and smuggling ring, seizing 62 kg of contraband worth ₹92 crore in the international market. Seven individuals were arrested in connection with the case.
On August 20, DRI Indore officials, with the assistance of the Railway Protection Force, intercepted two passengers at Bhopal railway station carrying around 25 kg of Thailand-origin hydroponic weed, valued at ₹25 crore. This was part of a wider pan-India crackdown, leading to the seizure of 72 kg of ganja and the arrest of the syndicate’s mastermind and five associates.