2 tonne drugs worth ₹55cr seized in 6 months: Police

The total value of the drug haul last year was pegged at ₹60 crore as against the ₹55 crore calculated so far in this year. In terms of quantity, the total drug haul was 3705 kgs in 2021 and 2005 kgs in 2022 until June, the police said.

Launching a crackdown against the growing menace of banned substances in Bengaluru, the city police have registered 1,1716 drug-related cases and booked 2,262 persons till mid- June, this year, an official in the know of the developments said on Sunday.

In June second week, after receiving a tip-off, a police team had raided a rave party at a high-end hotel on the Old Airport Road for selling and consuming drugs.Police reportedly found multiple drugs such as MDMA, ecstasy pills, charas and ganja and detained around 33 people. (Hindustan Times)

The number of cases registered in the first six months indicates that by the year end, the total figure is likely to surpass the last year’s numbers, according to the Bengaluru police.

The total value of the drug haul last year was pegged at ₹60 crore as against the ₹55 crore calculated so far in this year. In terms of quantity, the total drug haul was 3705 kgs in 2021 and 2005 kgs in 2022 until June, the police said.

In comparison, 2,766 cases were registered with 3,673 suspects being arrested in 2020. The figure was 768 cases and 1,260 arrests in 2019, HT had reported.

The police also destroyed 21 tonnes of seized narcotics, worth nearly ₹ 50 crore, on Sunday as part of International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

“Value (of seized product) is already at ₹ 55 crore and we are about to surpass in six months only when compared to last year. The number of cases may be less but the quality and quantity per case has gone up,” joint commissioner of police (crime), Bengaluru City Raman Gupta said.

Last year, a total of 5,753 people were booked in a 4,555 cases said the police.

A total of 3,641.756 kg drugs worth over ₹592 million was seized in 2021 against 3,912.826 kg drugs worth ₹213 million captured in 2020, and 1053.188 kg drugs worth ₹34,686,700 in 2019.

As one of India’s biggest urban centres and home to over 12 million residents, Bengaluru has seen a sharp spike in drugs that range from marijuana to cocaine and other chemically-prepared substances, Gupta added.

Talking about an increase in the number of drug busts, Gupta said, “Particular reason (for higher busts) is because it is a priority to rid the state of the menace for police, government and home department.”He added that the number of consumers have also gone up.

“The demand has gone up because it (Bengaluru) is a tech hub and there are techies from north India and other parts of the country who are settled here. Young generation gets easily enticed to such vices. So, we are trying our best to target the drug trade,” he added.

The police said that they have destroyed 4,353kg of narcotics, 6,679 MDMA (Methyl​enedioxy​methamphetamine) and ecstasy pills, 2,995 LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) strips, seized between August 25, 2021 and June 26, 2022.

The Bengaluru police on Sunday said that it has started to attach the property of drug offenders in the city to tighten the noose around dealers of narcotic substances.

“There are two, three measures we have started from just around a month ago in which we attach the property of drug offenders. There are two such cases where this was implemented for the first time in Bengaluru city,” the official said, adding that this measure would be “very very effective” in the long run.

The number of foreigners involved in the drug trade has also gone up, data shows.

In 183 cases last year, there were 141 who were foreigners and so far, in 2022, there have been 53 cases in which 45 accused people are from other countries.

“In 2021 and until June 2022, there has been a record seizing of drugs. The locals and foreigners involved in the illegal trade have been booked and stern action would be taken against them,” the Bengaluru police said in a statement on Sunday.

Among the findings, include the discovery of a ‘narco lab’ which was seized in which one foreign national has been booked for trying to produce MDMA and various agricultural ingredients used to manufacture the large quantities of the product were captured,” the police added.

The police also added that during investigation, a large network was discovered where accused people, locals and foreigners, would search the dark web and purchase the drugs using cryptocurrencies which was later on supplied with the help of delivery apps.

In June second week, after receiving a tip-off, a police team had raided a rave party at a high-end hotel on the Old Airport Road for selling and consuming drugs.Police reportedly found multiple drugs such as MDMA, ecstasy pills, charas and ganja and detained around 33 people, of which two were party organisers, while the rest were attendees of the party.

The police said that a large amount of marijuana is supplied in the state from Telangana, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Assam.

Synthetic drugs like MDMA are supplied from Delhi, Punjab, Kerala, Maharashtra and Goa among other places, said the police.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), in 2020, Bengaluru had reported the highest number of cases related to narcotics in the country.