DRI busts mephedrone lab in Sahyadri ranges; five arrested

Acting on specific intelligence, officials traced a camouflaged drug unit functioning under the cover of a poultry farm

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a mobile mephedrone manufacturing laboratory operating in the Sahyadri ranges under Operation Sahyadri Checkmate, officials said on Sunday. Around 22 kg of the banned drug was seized, and five persons were arrested.

The laboratory was designed to evade detection by frequently shifting locations. (HT)

Acting on specific intelligence, officials traced a camouflaged drug unit functioning under the cover of a poultry farm. The laboratory was designed to evade detection by frequently shifting locations.

On Saturday, the agency dismantled the makeshift but fully operational lab used to manufacture mephedrone, prohibited under the NDPS Act.

Officials seized 21.912 kg of mephedrone—11.848 kg in liquid form, 9.326 kg in semi-liquid form and 738 grams in crystalline form—along with 71.5 kg of raw material capable of producing nearly 15 kg of the finished drug. The total market value of the contraband is estimated at ₹55 crore.

Three persons, including the manufacturer, the financer-consigner and the poultry farm owner, were arrested during the raid. The first batch of the drug had been concealed at the farm owner’s residence, officials said.

In a follow-up action, DRI officers arrested two more persons near an old octroi naka in a forested area while they were allegedly on their way to collect the drugs.

Officials said four of the five arrested are repeat offenders with previous cases under the NDPS Act and other serious laws, including the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), 1999.