Assam Rifles seizes poppy seeds, foreign cigarettes valued at Rs 8.70 crore

Aizawl, Sep 28 (IANS) The Assam Rifles personnel have seized poppy seeds (Grade A) and foreign made cigarettes valued at Rs 8.70 crore and arrested ten smugglers in Mizoram, officials said on Sunday.

A Defence spokesperson said that acting on specific intelligence about movement of contraband and illegal items, Assam Rifles launched an operation in the Seiling and Zokhawsang areas in Mizoram’s Aizawl district on Saturday night.

The Assam Rifles troopers intercepted four Aizawl bound trucks at Zokhawsang gate along National Highway-6 During the subsequent search, the para-military force team recovered a total of 650 bags of white poppy seeds (Grade-A) and 35 cartons of foreign made cigarettes from the four trucks amounting to approximately Rs 5.9 crore.

The operation also led to the apprehension of seven individuals, all belonging to bordering Champhai district of Mizoram.

In another operation, acting on secret information regarding smuggling of foreign origin cigarettes, Assam Rifles in coordination with Mizoram Police launched an operation on Saturday at Tlangsam areas in Champhai district.

The consignment, moving from Tiao River towards Tlangsam via a forest route, was tracked and intercepted by the joint team at a strategic location.

The Tiao River flows between the Mizoram state in India and the Chin State in Myanmar.

During the operation, the team recovered different types of foreign cigarettes, contained in 146 cases. The contraband, smuggled from Myanmar, valued at approximately Rs 2.80 crore, was carried by three individuals.

All three individuals belong to Tlangsam areas of Champhai district. The apprehended individuals and seized contraband were handed over to the Legal Metrology Department in Champhai for taking further legal action.

Myanmar's Chin state is a hub for smuggling of varied drugs, exotic wildlife animals and many other contraband through six Mizoram districts -- Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Hnahthial, Saitual and Serchhip.

A variety of drugs, especially highly addictive methamphetamine tablets, heroin, arms and ammunition, explosives, and different types of contraband, including exotic animals, are often illegally traded through six districts in Mizoram.

These six districts share unfenced borders of 510 km with Myanmar.

From Mizoram, these drugs are ferried to other parts of the country and abroad, including Bangladesh, through Assam and Tripura.

--IANS

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