Major drug cartel busted after 4-month long operation; 15 held, drugs worth Rs 547 crore seized

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has seized drugs worth Rs 547 crore and arrested 15 people in a four-month long operation that exposed a massive drug diversion racket across Punjab, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi, a senior officer said here on Friday.

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The crackdown led to the confiscation of over 1.42 crore Tramadol and Alprazolam tablets, 2.9 kg of Tramadol powder, and more than 9 lakh bottles of Codeine-based cough syrup.

"Bharat is axing down drug cartels with ruthless aggression. The Amritsar Zonal Unit of the NCB axed a drug diversion cartel through a 4-month-long operation across 4 states, seizing drugs worth Rs 547 crore and arresting 15. It is a giant stride towards building a drug-free Bharat under the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modia. Congratulations to Team NCB," Union Home Minister Amit Shah said.

According to the NCB official, the investigation began in Amritsar in December 2024 when a man impersonating a doctor was caught with thousands of psychotropic tablets.

"This led to the discovery of a sprawling supply chain involving dummy medical setups, fake stockists, and rogue pharmaceutical firms," the official said.

Later, in a coordinated raid on April 20 and 21, NCB teams recovered 11,693 CBCS bottles and 2.9 kg of Tramadol powder from J R Pharmaceuticals in Haridwar. A similar raid at Embit Bio Medix in Himachal Pradesh uncovered 19.25 lakh tablets, while Aashi Pharmaceutical in Delhi yielded 1.17 crore tablets.

"The proprietor of Embit Bio Medix was caught at Delhi airport on April 18 while attempting to flee to Vietnam," the officer said.

Investigators revealed the main accused had previously operated illegally in Delhi before setting up new firms under associates' names in Himachal and Delhi.

As per the official, several front companies listed as stockists turned out to be fake, including Tiwari Medical Agency in Dehradun, which was registered to a sweet shop. "One arrest in that case led to the seizure of 1.24 lakh Alprazolam tablets from a roadside dhaba," said the official.

Officials say more arrests and seizures are expected as the probe continues to uncover deeper layers of the network.