Agartala, November 20: Security forces in Tripura seized high-purity cocaine worth ₹8 crore ($960,000) in a major joint operation on Monday, marking one of the biggest narcotics recoveries reported in eastern India in recent years, officials said.
Assam Rifles and the Customs Department conducted the raid in central Agartala without prior intimation to the state police or its intelligence unit. Officers intercepted two men outside the city’s Jagannath Temple and recovered 800 grams of what investigators described as “superior-grade” cocaine. Both suspects are residents of Bishalgarh.
Preliminary findings indicate the cocaine originated in South America and travelled through Punjab before reaching Tripura, pointing to a wide and sophisticated trafficking supply chain, officials said.
Narcotics such as cocaine, yaba tablets, fencidyl and heroin are already circulating in the state, but law enforcement personnel say offenders often receive little or no punishment, allowing them to resume operations with ease. The latest seizure has renewed questions over the state’s ongoing anti-drug campaign, which the ruling coalition frequently highlights under its “drug-free Tripura” agenda.
Security agencies said the purity of the seized cocaine made it one of the most potent and expensive consignments detected in the region. Investigators are now working to identify the broader network behind the trafficking route, amid growing concerns about the penetration of international drug syndicates into India’s northeast.
