CHANDIGARH: Punjab Police has seized 10.67 lakh of opioid-based Tramadol tablets, known as jihadi pills as ISIS militants and other terrorist groups are known to use them.
Around 70 lakh tablets were sold in Amritsar, Bathinda, Hoshiarpur and Phagwara in last 10 months to drug addicts.
Tramadol is a schedule H drug under the NDPS Act. These tablets, which are available for Rs 56 a strip on prescription, were being sold for Rs 560 a strip illegally to drug addicts.
Tramadol is used by jihadist fighters as a painkiller and to heighten resistance to physical stress. Additional DGP-cum-Special Task Force (Drugs) chief Gurpreet Deo said the racket was being operated from a medical store in Ludhiana.
The store owner, Pardeep Goyal, was the kingpin of the racket and has been arrested. During a search at his house, 20,500 tablets were recovered.
KS Pannu, Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, Punjab, said of the 16,000 licensed chemists in Punjab, 117 were found to be selling banned drugs, resulting in 421 licences being cancelled in last five months.