June 2026
June 2026
India - Becoming a part of new Middle East Drug network
2024
Indian Coast Guard intercepted a Myanmarese fishing boat in the Andaman Sea, carrying methamphetamine worth $4.3 billion.
Syrian connection
First major seizure in India's Mundra
India's first major seizure of 227 kgs of the synthetic stimulant Captagon under Operation Ragepill was values at approx. ₹182 crores, recovered from Delhi's Neb Sarai and Gujarat's Mundra
For decades, the familiar supply chains are Heroin from Golden Crescent and Methamphetamine from Golden Triangle.
Captagon powder packets were hidden with sheep wool inside a container at Mundra Port, when captured.
Developed in 1961
Originally developed in 1961 by the German pharmaceutical company Degussa under the chemical name Fenethylline, prescribed for conditions such as attention deficit disorders, narcolepsy, depression and chronic fatigue.
Banned in 1980s
Became popular in 1960s and 1970s, for its reputations for increasing energy, concentration and endurance. But sooner, addiction concerns emerged. By 1980s, most countries and United Nations banned the drug and classified it as a controlled psychotropic substance.
Traditional production centres
This pushed the manufacturing and trade under ground, with production in Balkans, Turkey, later established in Syria, which became the world's largest manufacturer, accounting for 80% of global supply. Traditional trafficking have been through Jordan and Iraq, but later the Balkan Turkey route became prominent.
Major production and trafficking were concentrated in Bulgaria, Slovenia, Serbia, Montenegro, Turkey.
Rise of new centres for manufacturing
After the fall of Assad regime in Syria, the state sponsored manufacturing fragmented into network of warlords and non state actors, spilling to new regions such as Yemen and Sudan.
Methods to prevent
The challenge is therefore strategic rather than mere criminal Proactive intelligence led prevention Port security must prioritise risk based container profiling Expanded non intrusive scanning, especially Gulf linked trade routes Customs modernisation Integrated intelligence grid connecting Customs, Narcotics Control Bureau, Coast Guard Enable real time coordination Tighter regulation of pharmaceutical inputs and precursor chemicals to prevent domestic manufacturing Coordination with Gulf countries Track consignments alongside shell firms Financial surveillance to disrupt hawala and trade based money laundering networks Print
