BHOPAL: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized 9.139 kg of crystalline methamphetamine worth Rs 7.32 crore from a passenger travelling on an inter-state luxury bus from Delhi at Bhopal’s Inter-State Bus Terminal (ISBT) on Tuesday, highlighting how drug syndicates are using buses to smuggle synthetic drugs across the country.
Working on specific intelligence indicating that an Indian male passenger was travelling by bus from Delhi with narcotic substances, the DRI sleuths intercepted the concerned passenger upon the bus’s arrival at the ISBT-Bhopal on Tuesday.
Specific intelligence developed by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) indicated that an Indian male passenger travelling by bus from Delhi would be carrying narcotic substances.
A subsequent search led the DRI team to recover 11 plastic packets (concealed in packets of salwar suits) containing 9.139 kg of crystalline methamphetamine from two mid-sized trolley bags carried by the passenger.
Tests conducted with the NDPS Field Test Kit confirmed the presence of methamphetamine in the eleven recovered plastic packets. The drug, valued at Rs 7.32 crore in the international illicit market, was seized, and the drug trafficker was arrested under the provisions of the NDPS Act, 1985.
Importantly, methamphetamine is a synthetic (man-made) stimulant that affects the central nervous system. It is chemically created in laboratories using precursor chemicals like pseudoephedrine or P2P, combined with other agents.
This was the second time in less than a month that a major seizure of synthetic drugs/stimulants had been made by the DRI sleuths from an inter-state luxury bus in Madhya Pradesh.
Earlier, on September 21, the DRI sleuths, acting on specific intelligence, had intercepted a Nigerian woman at the Purple Bus Travel Agency near Teen Imli Chauraha in Indore. She was allegedly travelling by bus to Pune and was suspected of carrying narcotic and psychotropic substances.
A search of her navy-blue duffle bag led to the recovery of 1.120 kg of amphetamine in crystalline/powder form, 296 gm of amphetamine/MDMA tablets and 10 gm of hydroponic cannabis. The seized drugs were valued at around Rs 1.19 crore in the illicit market. The woman was arrested under the provisions of the NDPS Act, 1985.
