GUWAHATI: Dealing a major blow to the illegal drugs trade, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) of Guwahati and Imphal was successful in busting an international network in trafficking of chemical precursors, as the chemicals used in the manufacture of drugs are referred to.
The network was involved in the illegal trade of pseudoephedrine, supplying the chemical from India to Myanmar, officials said.
The officials also added that, during the operation, as many as seven people were arrested for their involvement in the racket.
The operation by NCB officials led to the seizure of a total of 110.5 kilograms of pseudoephedrine in tablet form.
Pseudoephedrine as a medicine is used most commonly as a decongestant, although in this case, it is used clandestinely as a precursor chemical in the illicit manufacture of methamphetamine.
The NCB released an official statement, in which it said that the key person in this network, identified as one Md Abdul Wakil, a graduate of Jamia Millia Islamia with an MBA degree, has been nabbed by the team.
Known to be tech-savvy, Wakil is said to have utilized a business-to-business (B2B) platform for the trafficking of pseudoephedrine.
The NCB informed that he got in touch with one Bhadresh Patel of Recover Healthcare, Ahmedabad through the B2B portal Tradeindia, to procure 1500 packets of Phifed tablets containing Pseudoephedrine Hydrochloride. To order the substance, he used fake documents of authorization prepared in the name of Elite Medical Store, Aizawl.
Through this order, a total of 533 packets comprising 110.5 kg were received by him as part of the total 1500 packets of pseudoephedrine ordered by him, officials informed.
Moreover, it was also revealed that two employees of Recover Healthcare, namely Nitin Kumar Panchal and Anilbhai Nayaka, who were entrusted with the task of placing the orders for pseudoephedrine and engaging in the fake labelling of the products, have also been arrested.
The NCB also nabbed the mastermind involved in the diversion of pseudoephedrine. He has been identified as Bhadresh Patel, the owner of Ahmedabad- based Recover Healthcare.
Based on the statement of the mastermind behind the trade, an investigation was conducted against Ardor Drugs Pvt Ltd, a pharmaceutical company based in Songadh, of Tapi in Gujarat. The probe revealed that Ardor Drugs Pvt Ltd supplied Phifed tablets without any label or marking and used false billing, which indicated the motive of diversion to be illicit manufacture of drugs.
Later, all the unmarked packets of Phifed tablets were falsely marked and labeled as Citrizine HCl 10 mg (Levocet), a medicine which does not contain any NDPS ingredients.
Director of Ardor Drugs Pvt. Ltd. Harshal Desai, and Ex-Director of Ardor Drugs Pvt Ltd Mehul Desai were arrested by the NCB team, executing the Non Bailable Warrant issued by the Court. After their arrest, both Harshal Desai and Mehul Desai are now facing trial after getting booked by DRI Surat for similar offences.
While conducting raids on various premises including offices, godowns, and residences belonging to the accused, NCB discovered lots of counterfeit labels.
These include fake labels of Levocet, manufactured by Sun View Biotech, and Colzen by Zenith Pharma. It is significant to note that 1.3 million tablets of "Colzen" were earlier seized in Myanmar, which highlights the international nature of this vast illicit trade network.
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