Drugs worth Rs 8.57 crore seized in Mizoram, three held

Aizawl, Dec 6 (IANS) The Assam Rifles along with other law enforcing agencies have seized drugs worth Rs 8.57 crore and apprehended three smugglers in Mizoram, officials said on Friday.

Assam Rifles sources said that the paramilitary troops along with Excise and Narcotics Department personnel recovered 244.500 gms of heroin and 2.288 kgs of ‘WY’ tablets worth Rs 8.57 crore and apprehended three smugglers from Mualkawi areas in the Champhai district on Thursday.

The arrested drug peddlers were identified as Lalhruaitluanga (56), Lalromawia (44) and Lalruatmawia (42).

In another operation, the Assam Rifles along with the Mizoram Police Department recovered Rs 1.24 crore of Indian currencies and apprehended one Myanmar citizen identified as Lianbiaksang (26) from Ngur areas of the same Champhai along the India-Myanmar border.

The operation was based on specific input and the Indian currencies were found inside Myanmar citizen’s bags.

The drugs and the Indian currencies have been handed over to the police of the Champhai district for further legal proceedings.

With this Thursday’s seizure, in the past 17 days (November 20 and December 5), the Assam Rifles, state police along with other law enforcing agencies in separate operations seized various drugs, smuggled from Myanmar, worth Rs 178.57 crore in Tripura and Mizoram.

On December 2, in a significant haul of drugs, the Assam Rifles in a joint operation with state police seized huge quantities of drugs worth Rs 68.03 crore in Mizoram’s Champhai district, bordering Myanmar.

On November 24, Assam Rifles, in a joint operation with Customs, seized one kg of Crystal Methamphetamine tablets valued at Rs 16 crore from Badharghat, on the outskirts of Tripura's capital city Agartala.

On November 20, the Assam Rifles and state police jointly seized 28.520 kg of Methamphetamine tablets, 52 grams of heroin worth Rs 85.95 crore and a foreign pistol in three separate operations in Mizoram’s Champhai district.