NCB seizes 82.53kg of cocaine worth ₹900crore in Delhi

The seizure, which was made on Thursday, follows months of investigation into leads from earlier seizures

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Thursday said it has seized 82.53 kilogramme of high-quality cocaine worth approximately ₹900 crore during operations in Delhi’s Janakpuri and Nangloi areas and arrested two people in connection with the case, the agency said in a statement.

The seizures were made from Janakpuri and Nangloi areas, and two people were arrested in this connection, police said. (HT Photo)

The seizure, which was made on Thursday, follows months of investigation into leads from earlier seizures by the anti-narcotics agency in March and August this year, NCB said.

The operation began with a parcel intercepted at a courier shop in Delhi, which was destined for Australia, the agency said.

“In this case, the initial recovery, from a courier shop in Delhi, was from a parcel which was destined to Australia. NCB was able to backtrack the supply, which was concealed at Janakpuri and Nangloi, Delhi,” deputy director general, Neeraj Kumar Gupta said on Friday.

The officer added that investigation conducted so far revealed that this syndicate is being run by a group of people based abroad, and some quantities of the seized contraband was to be sent to Australia through courier.

“The persons involved in this case are mainly ‘hawala operators’ who use pseudonyms for day-to-day conversations on drug dealings, making them anonymous to one another,” Gupta said, adding that two people from Delhi and Sonipat have been arrested in the matter.

Union home minister Amit Shah lauded NCB’s achievement, and emphasised that it highlighted the government’s unyielding stance against drug rackets.

“The back-to-back major breakthroughs against illegal drugs in a single day demonstrate the Modi government’s unwavering resolve to build a drug-free Bharat. NCB today confiscated 82.53kg of high-grade cocaine in New Delhi. The massive drug consignment worth approximately ₹900 crore was tracked down by a bottom-to-top approach after a quantity of drugs was seized in a courier centre in Delhi. Our hunt against drug rackets will continue ruthlessly. Congratulations to the NCB on this major success,” Shah wrote on X.

The bust is the latest in a string of recent cocaine busts in Delhi. In October, a multi-agency crackdown against a major international drugs syndicate resulted in the seizure of around 1,300kg of cocaine in three raids across Delhi and Gujarat.