Mizoram Police seized Myanmar-origin drugs worth an estimated ₹23.23 crore and arrested 11 alleged drug peddlers across five coordinated anti-narcotics operations conducted over four days, officials confirmed on Wednesday, 22 July. The haul — spanning methamphetamine tablets and heroin — was recovered across multiple locations in Aizawl and Kolasib districts, underscoring the state's deepening vulnerability as a cross-border narcotics corridor.

Key Operations and Seizures

The largest single recovery came from a joint operation by the CID (Special Branch) and the Kolasib District Executive Force (DEF) along the National Highway near Khamrang village in Kolasib district on Tuesday. The team seized 15 kg of suspected methamphetamine — approximately 15 lakh tablets — valued at ₹12 crore. Four alleged peddlers, all residents of different villages in Kolasib district, were arrested.

Later that day, a CID (Special Branch) team raided the New Look Restaurant in Chanmari Kawn, Aizawl district, recovering 4.770 kg of suspected methamphetamine tablets worth approximately ₹3.82 crore. Three persons, all residents of Sribhumi district (formerly Karimganj) in southern Assam, were taken into custody.

In a separate interception near Delhi Dhaba at Thuampui in Aizawl district, the same CID team stopped a vehicle and recovered 9.016 kg of suspected methamphetamine valued at around ₹7.21 crore. The contraband was seized from Malsawmtluanga, 29, a resident of Zokhawthar — a border town in Champhai district adjoining Myanmar — who was arrested on the spot.

Heroin Recoveries in Aizawl and Lunglei

A joint operation by the Special Narcotics Police Station and the Assam Rifles at Khatla in Aizawl district yielded 21.330 grams of suspected heroin valued at over ₹5 lakh. The accused, a native of Chhawrtui in Khawzawl district, was arrested at the scene.

In the fourth joint operation, the District Special Branch (DSB) of Mizoram Police, Lunglei, working with the Border Security Force (BSF), seized six soap cases containing 71.59 grams of heroin valued at approximately ₹14.31 lakh at Sethlun in Lunglei district. Two individuals were arrested in connection with the recovery.

Why Mizoram Is a Key Trafficking Corridor

Officials noted that Mizoram has increasingly emerged as a major drug transit route in the Northeast, owing to its 510-km unfenced international border with Myanmar — part of the notorious 'Golden Triangle', one of the world's largest illicit narcotics-producing regions. The state also shares a 318-km border with Bangladesh, making it acutely susceptible to cross-border smuggling of narcotics, wildlife products, arms, and other contraband.

Notably, the absence of physical border fencing along much of this stretch allows trafficking networks to operate with relative ease, a challenge law enforcement agencies have flagged repeatedly in recent years.

Legal Action and Ongoing Investigation

Police have registered five separate cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. Investigators are working to identify the source of the contraband, map the wider trafficking network, and determine whether other individuals are involved. Officials said coordinated operations along the international border have been significantly intensified in recent months as part of a broader crackdown on cross-border drug syndicates.

With five operations, multiple agencies, and arrests spanning two states, this four-day sweep signals a stepped-up enforcement posture — though the scale of the seizures also reflects how deeply entrenched the trafficking routes have become.