The cops from Assam mounted a major operation against drug syndicates operating in Barak Valley on Wednesday when they raided the Kaliganj area in Sribhumi district. During the intervening night, following a tip off received from a reliable source, Sribhumi Police conducted a raid based on the developed intelligence and crushed a huge and oldest supply line of drugs, achieving another breakthrough in the State-wide campaign against drugs: “Assam Against Drugs”.
In the course of the operation, that accused vehicle was stopped on the highway by law enforcement. This yielded 29,600 YABA tablets, a powerful methamphetamine-based drug, valued at around ₹4.5 crore in the market. A drug peddler was arrested from the spot and raids are being conducted to trace more members of the gang. The seizure is a major blow to the narcotics smuggling ring that has infested the area, given that Sribhumi is close to the interstate lines and international boundaries making it an easy conduit for smuggling.
The raid is part of a massive continuous drive against the drugs that has been going to the rounds in the entire Barak Valley recently, comprising Sribhumi, Cachar and Hailakandi districts. In the last few months, Assam Police have undertook several high-profile operations where they recovered drugs of hundreds of crores of rupees, and apprehended many involved in drug trade. For example, there was a police operation in Hathikhira under Sribhumi Police in December 2024 and police seized a truck which was transporting 1.5 lakh tablets of YABA worth ₹45 crores and a separate raid in Dholai Ridge of Cachar disrict the worth of the recovered drugs were ₹20 crores. Another Sribhumi raid earlier this year, in February 2025 had yielded a stash of YABA tablets which were worth ₹7 crore and the arrest of three suspects.
Strategically located and with it’s proximity to neighouring states Mizoram and Tripura and international borders, the Barak Valley has become a drug trafficking haven. Trending in the city State content Illegal YABA tablets, smuggled here from neighbouring regions, are increasingly a cause of concern due to their cost as well as addictive nature. The Assam Police have hit back with more surveillance, intelligence-based operations and support from the Assam Rifles and the Special Task Force (STF). These operations have broken the back of big trafficking networks with seizures since 2021 amounting to more than ₹2,600 crore in narcotics.
The Kaliganj raid has been a pointer to the war against drugs that law enforcers and other law enforcing agencies are waging at great risk, despite well-organized cartels. A grim reminder of this threat came a mere two months ago (December 2024), when Assam Police jawan, Ujjwal Bora, was killed during a routine anti-drug drive in Sribhumi when a vehicle trying to hit-and-run past a police checkpoint ran over him. Nonetheless, the police are undeterred in their endeavour to rid Assam of drugs; both Sarma and senior officers have emphasized this.
Local communities in Barak Valley have welcomed the police drive and many residents have demanded that the initiative carry on with a mission to protect the youth from the dangers of becoming drug addicts. To tackle the source of drug problem, the Assam government has also undertaken awareness campaigns and rehabilitation programmes in Kashmir. With the crackdown on the Kaliganj smugglers progressing, the police is hopeful that the supply chain will be busted and human traffickers will have less incentive to conduct trafficking operations.
The successful operation on Wednesday further strengthens Assam’s resolve to fight the drug menace head on. As the state inches towards drug-free dreams with such seizure and arrest, message is loud and clear, there is no hideout in Assam for drugs.
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