Kerala: 816g MDMA seized in 48 hours; surge in drug haul anticipated after LS poll
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The enforcement agencies have seized a large quantity of synthetic drugs from two locations in the state within a span of 48 hours, indicating that the drug menace is going to intensify further in the state after the Lok Sabha polls.
About 616g of MDMA was seized by the excise from Kozhikode rural on Thursday, while 200g were seized from Angamaly by the police on Friday. The seized contraband could fetch more than Rs 25 lakh in the open market, said an excise source.
As per the excise sources, the smuggling of narcotics to the state had reduced since March third week due to the heavy deployment of police, excise and other paramilitary forces in the inter-state borders owing to the Lok Sabha polls. Since the poll date was announced on March 16, the state and central agencies had intensified the scrutiny of vehicles on the inter-state borders of Kerala.
Apart from the police and excise, officers from the Income Tax department, SGST division, Directorate of Enforcement, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), and the Narcotics Control Bureau were involved in inspections at the state border and within the state.
A senior excise officer told TNIE that seizure of commercial quantity of MDMA rarely happened in the run up to the Lok Sabha polls. MDMA weighing more than 10g is considered as a commercial quantity, as per the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS).
“Because of the strict surveillance on border points and multi-layered screening of vehicles done within the state and outside, it was almost impossible to smuggle in contraband during the Lok Sabha poll campaign period. Now, that the polls are over in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, we are expecting a surge in smuggling attempts. More seizures are also expected in the coming days,” he said.
“The synthetic drugs reach Kerala from Chennai, Bengaluru, Delhi and Goa, while cannabis is sourced from plantations located in the hinterlands in Andhra-Odisha border. Since the Lok Sabha poll date was announced, heavy deployment of law enforcement officers made movement of the narcotics a risky affair. Now that the vigilance has been scaled down, the rackets having inter-state connections would be eying to push in the drugs,” the excise officer added.