Another Drug Bust This time in Jhabua

 

 

 

Just a few days after the Rs 1,814 crore drug bust in the State capital, another major narcotics revelation has been unveiled in the State. Giving a crushing defeat to the narcotics trade and production in the region, The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted an illegal Mephedrone (MD) production unit in the tribal-dominated Jhabua district of the state seizing drugs worth Rs 168 crore. Earlier, the drug bust in the capital was reported on October 6 and this incident in Jhabua is the second such incident in the State in within a span of a few days. The factory, located in the Meghnagar industrial area, was found to be manufacturing Mephedrone in an illegal manner. During the search, 36 kilograms of Mephedrone powder and 76 kilograms of liquid Mephedrone, along with raw material and equipment, were seized under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The official estimated the value of the seized drugs to be around Rs 168 crore.

 

As per information, four people, including the factory’s director have been arrested in connection with the case. According to a DRI official, the factory was raided on Saturday morning based on a tip-off from an informant. The samples of the drugs were sent to the Forensics Science Laboratory for preliminary testing. The lab confirmed the presence of Mephedrone in the samples, officials added. “Busting of a factory manufacturing illicit drugs shows DRI’s capabilities in dismantling syndicates engaged in the manufacturing, sale, and distribution of such drugs, which have the potential to harm India’s youth,” a statement from the DRI said. As of now, the factory has been sealed. The DRI official stated that the illegal production of Mephedrone was a significant operation, and the seizure of such a large quantity of the drug is a major blow to the narcotics trade in the region. The arrested individuals are being interrogated, and further investigations are underway to uncover the extent of the illegal operation and the involvement of other individuals.

 

Notably, Mephedrone is a synthetic stimulant drug that is banned in India under the NDPS Act. Its production and sale are strictly regulated, and any illegal activity related to the drug is punishable under the law. The DRI’s crackdown on the illegal Mephedrone production unit is a significant step in curbing the narcotics trade in the country. The incident has come to light only a few days after a joint operation of Gujarat Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS) and Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Bhopal where 907.09 kg of MD drug worth over Rs 1,800 cr were seized in the city. With this, questions have started arising on situation of law and order and narcotics in the State. The State leadership is at the helm of heavy criticism and social and political groups calling this act ‘shameful’. Slamming the Government, Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee chief Jitu Patwari said that the way the drug business is being exposed layer by layer in the State, it seems that MP is the first State in the country leading in drug business. “A total of 5 to 6 such incidents have been reported in the State in a year, after all what and what kind of state does the BJP government want to make this state, why does it want to bring the future of children to the brink of destruction,” he asked. Patwari said that for the last 22-25 years, BJP Government is in power in State in which Shivraj Singh Chouhan was the Chief Minister for about 20 years and now Mohan Yadav is the CM. Today, MP has left Punjab behind, in which the drug business is spreading very rapidly. Recently, the drug business of Rs 1,800 crore in Bhopal and now the recovery of drugs worth Rs 168 crore in Meghnagar in Jhabua, a tribal district of Madhya Pradesh where most of the Gaun, Bhil, Bhilala, Kaul and other tribals reside, is a big matter in itself. Patwari said that the owner of the drug factory running in Meghnagar of Jhabua is said to be from Gujarat.