Major narcotics haul: Heroin of worth Rs1 bn seized, 1 held

Jammu: In a major crackdown against narcotics smuggling, Jammu Police on Thursday have seized 199-marked heroin packets weighing 52 kgs worth Rs 1 billion in an international market from Jhajjar Kotli area here in the city outskirts.
“Acting on specific inputs about the smuggling of contraband, Station House Officer, Police Station, Jhajjar Kotli, Devender Singh laid surprised check points and started frisking the vehicles,” Mukesh Singh, Additional Director General of Police, Jammu Zone briefed media here at a press conference on Thursday evening.
He was flanked by the Director General of Police, Dilbag Singh and Senior Superintendent of Police, Jammu Chandan Kohli.
“A Haryana registration truck coming from Kashmir on its way towards Punjab, tried to break the checkpoint but the alert police teams chased and intercepted it,” said the top cop.
He said that the driver managed to give a slip to the police but has been identified, adding, “the co-driver namely Bharat Kumar from Kurukshetra, Haryana was on the spot taken into custody.”
During frisking of the vehicle, Singh said that packets with 199-mark were seized from the truck and after investigation, it was found as 52-kg heroin worth Rs 100 crores in an international market.
“Previously also in certain incidents of narcotics smuggling seizure from the Pakistan side, such marks were found on the packets but from where it was loaded and where to be delivered, cross border links, are being investigated,” said Singh.
The ADGP also added that in the last two years, Jammu Police have seized 185 kg heroin worth Rs 360 crores and 1500 persons were arrested out of which six detentions were under Public Safety Act, who were habitual offenders in narcotics smuggling and as many as 1200 cases were registered.
Moreover, he said that in this period, 500-kg charas, 2500-kg poppy straw and Rs 2.5 crores as narcotics related money was also seized.
J&K DGP Dilbag Singh earlier at the beginning of the presser said that transportation of narcotics from Pakistan side was already on a larger scale and in the recent past also, huge narcotics seizures are made from Karnah, Baramulla, Rajouri, Poonch and Kathua routes.
“In some of the incidents, drones was also used to smuggle narcotics and when investigated, many names from drug mafia surfaced,” he said while appreciating the Jammu and Kashmir Police for doing a commendable task in fighting against narco-terrorism racket being run by the Pakistan to raise funds for terror activities.