Aizawl: In one of the largest drug busts this year in Northeast India, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized 52.67 kg of methamphetamine tablets valued at Rs 52.67 crore in the international market from the outskirts of Aizawl, Mizoram. The seizure was made during a late-night operation on April 11, following specific intelligence inputs.
The contraband, smuggled into Mizoram from Myanmar via the Zokhawthar sector, was concealed in 53 neatly packed, brick-sized packets hidden within the folds of a tarpaulin cover on a 12-wheeler truck. The truck, registered in Nagaland, was intercepted while enroute to Tripura. Prior to picking up the narcotics consignment, it had carried cement from Meghalaya to Champhai, then proceeded to Zokhawthar to load the illegal cargo.
Each packet bore markings such as “3030 Export Only,” “999,” and diamond symbols, and contained orange-pink tablets. A field test using the NDPS kit confirmed the substance as methamphetamine, commonly known as ‘ice’ or ‘crystal meth’—a highly addictive stimulant increasingly smuggled through India’s northeastern borders.
The DRI arrested both the driver and his assistant under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. At the time of interception, the truck was not carrying any declared goods, raising further suspicion and aiding in the timely seizure.
This operation adds to the growing list of successful interdictions by DRI in the region, with 148.50 kg of methamphetamine seized so far in 2025. Officials say the porous international borders and sophisticated smuggling networks pose a constant challenge to enforcement agencies in curbing the inflow of synthetic drugs.