Agartala, July 3:
Barely hours after the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), assisted by the Assam Rifles and the Railway Protection Force (RPF), seized codeine-based cough syrup worth ₹6.54 crore from a goods train at Agartala Railway Station, Tripura Police late Thursday night unearthed yet another massive consignment of banned cough syrup concealed inside a railway wagon, signalling what officials believe is the emergence of a new drug trafficking route through the state’s rail network.
The second seizure on the day was made after police acted on specific intelligence inputs indicating that a particular railway wagon was carrying contraband.
During the search, officials found a large number of plastic drums and sacks packed inside the compartment. Many of the drums, after being opened, were found to contain bottles of prohibited codeine-based cough syrup, while a few contained other materials.
Addressing reporters at the railway station late Thursday night, Inspector General (IG) of Tripura Police, Ipper Manchak D said the operation was still underway and that the exact quantity of the seized contraband could only be determined after every drum was opened and examined but it was huge number.
“We are still in the initial stage of the operation. A large number of drums have been taken out and the process is continuing. Only after all of them are checked will we know the exact quantity,” he said.
The IG said around 70 to 80 drums were found inside the wagon, adding that almost every drum opened so far contained the contraband, indicating that the final seizure was likely to be substantial.
“This is a huge consignment. These are not synthetic ‘fancy’ drugs but prohibited narcotic substances. The quantity appears to be very large, though it is too early to give an exact figure,” he said.
Manchak said investigators were working to identify those behind the consignment, including the consignor, consignee, transporter, manufacturing source and intended destination.
“Everything is subject to investigation. We will find out who booked the consignment, who transported it, where it was meant to be delivered and who is behind it,” he said.
Referring to an earlier major seizure in which over one lakh bottles of banned cough syrup were recovered and several accused were arrested during subsequent investigation, the IG asserted that police would dismantle the entire network behind the latest haul.
“We will go to the root of the syndicate. Whoever is involved—whether from Tripura or outside the state, whether connected with the Railways or anyone else—no one will be spared,” he said.
Manchak said intelligence suggests the consignment originated from Deoghar and travelled through multiple states before reaching Tripura. Acting on precise information, police intercepted the suspected wagon before the consignment could be moved further.
The back-to-back seizures within a single day have raised serious concerns over the increasing use of railway transportation by drug traffickers. While enforcement agencies have regularly intercepted smaller consignments on roads, officials believe organised syndicates are now attempting to exploit the railway network to transport larger volumes of contraband.
Earlier on Thursday, the DRI, with assistance from the Assam Rifles and the RPF, seized 55,626 bottles (100 ml each) of codeine-based cough syrup valued at approximately ₹6.54 crore from another goods train that had arrived from Bihar. One person was arrested in connection with that case, and further investigation is underway.
Tripura has long remained vulnerable to narcotics trafficking due to its strategic geographical location and its long international border with Bangladesh on three sides. The state is often used as a transit corridor by organised drug syndicates for smuggling narcotics and pharmaceutical contraband between different parts of India and across the international border.
The BJP-led state government has declared a “drug-free Tripura” as one of its key priorities. Under the leadership of Chief Minister Dr. Manik Saha, law enforcement agencies have intensified intelligence-based operations, resulting in a series of high-value narcotics seizures, arrests of traffickers and action against organised drug networks. Officials say the latest twin seizures demonstrate the government’s zero-tolerance approach and its determination to dismantle the supply chains operating through the state.
