On August 30, 2025, three persons – Neeraj Kumar (26), Jyoti Kumari (25) and Hashna Begum (26) – were arrested at the Agartala Railway Station in West Tripura District of Tripura after Police seized 29.140 kilograms of cannabis valued at around INR 400,000 from their possession.
On August 29, 2025, Assam Rifles, in a joint operation with the Special Narcotics Police Station, Aizawl, arrested two persons and seized methamphetamine tablets worth INR 210 million, in the Zemabawk South area of the Aizawl District of Mizoram.
On August 29, 2025, security forces (SFs) arrested a drug smuggler, Paogoulal Touthang (22), in the Hengbung Police Outpost area under the Senapati Police Station of Senapati District in Manipur. 205 soap cases of Brown Sugar weighing 2.816 kilograms were seized from his possession.
On August 29, 2025, the Arunachal Pradesh Police arrested a 21-year-old suspected drug peddler, Nobu Lamnio from Niti Vihar in Itanagar in the Papum Pare District of Arunachal Pradesh, and seized nine vials containing suspected heroin weighing 5.65 grams.
On August 28, 2025, SFs seized 9.6 lakh methamphetamine tablets valued at INR 1.44 billion, during a joint operation by the Border Security Force (BSF) under Sector Headquarters, Aizawl, and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), in the Serchhip District of Mizoram, and arrested three persons. Officials said this marked the second-largest methamphetamine haul in Mizoram in the past three years, highlighting the state’s continued vulnerability to cross-border drug trafficking.
On August 28, 2025, SFs arrested Henkhokai Singson (32) from Mulargao village under the Jiribam Police Station in the Jiribam District of Manipur, and recovered two soap cases containing contraband brown sugar, from his possession.
On August 26, 2025, the Manipur Police arrested a woman, Manneihoi Baite (49), in possession of 1,200 World is Yours (WY) or Yaba tablets (Meth laced with caffeine) worth INR 1,000,000 from S. Munnuam in the Churachandpur District of Manipur.
On August 26, 2025, SFs arrested five persons – Kaigunlal Haokip (22), Dalzagin (47), Seigoulal Haokip (32), Thangkhohao (34 and Samuel (30) – from Behiang and Bualkot villages in the Churachandpur District of Manipur, and recovered 56 soap cases of Heroin No.4 (approximately 728 grams).
On August 26, 2025, the Assam Police arrested one person and seized 417 grams of heroin with a locally estimated value of INR 28 million, from the Lakhipur area of the Cachar District of Assam.
On August 26, 2025, the Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) of Meghalaya Police arrested two persons – Hajrat Umar (28) and Phulchand Ali – and seized 137.86 grams of heroin with a locally estimated value of around INR 60,000,00 at the Umkiang Police Patrol Post under the Lumshnong Police Station in the East Jaintia Hills District of Meghalaya.
On August 25, 2025, the Tripura Police arrested two Bihari men – Sonu Kumar (31) and Suman Kumar Gupta (34) – from Agartala Railway Station in the West Tripura District of Tripura, and recovered 8.45 kilograms of Ganja (marijuana), estimated to be worth around INR 170,000.
These seizures coincide with intensified governmental and institutional action across the region. On May 29, 2025, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) reported that drug contraband worth INR 1,730 million had been seized since January 2025 in the Northeastern region alone, with 26 arrests, highlighting the magnitude of the challenge.
India’s Northeast – bordering Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan and China – sits astride some of Asia’s busiest narcotics corridors. In 2024–25, the region has seen a marked uptick in drug recoveries, especially methamphetamine (WY/Yaba) tablets and Heroin No. 4, flowing from the Golden Triangle via Myanmar. Daily headlines of interdictions in Mizoram, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Sikkim, paint a picture of both intensifying trafficking and increasingly coordinated enforcement.
Customs data released on June 26, 2025, indicates that narcotics now constitute 29 percent of all seizures in the Northeast – surpassing cigarettes (25 per cent), areca nut (24 per cent) and gold (11 per cent) – with estimated narcotics seizure values hitting INR 571,840,000 in the first half of 2025. Amphetamine-type stimulants, particularly Yaba tablets brewed in Myanmar’s Golden Triangle, have entered the fray in escalating quantities; 58 kilograms were seized in just the first half of 2025, compared to 20 kilograms in the entirety of 2023–24.
This surge is fuelling the shift toward narco-terrorism, with insurgent groups like the United National Liberation Front (UNLF), People’s Liberation Army (PLA), and Kukis/Zomis, leveraging narcotics proceeds to fund arms, camps, recruitment and training, effectively weaponizing local populations. A Manipur Police report revealed that in Manipur alone, between March 2022 and May 2023, narcotics worth INR 1,420 million were seized across over 764 cases, with a marked uptick in addiction-induced public health crises and dual epidemics including HIV—particularly driven by injecting drug use.
Insurgent groups such as the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN), National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB), United National Liberation Front (UNLF), and Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC), have long relied on drug trafficking and extortion as revenue streams. NSCN, for instance, reportedly retains 70 per cent of drug-derived profit and distributes the remainder to allied outfits. HNLC has also been known to operate cross-border enterprises, including betel nut plantations in Bangladesh, with earlier trade and arms links reportedly facilitated via the Indo–Myanmar border.
On August 27, 2025, Mizoram’s Excise and Narcotics Minister Lalnghinghlova Hmar informed the State Assembly that at least 351 people, including 46 women, have lost their lives in Mizoram due to drug abuse since 2020. He added that, between 2020 and August 8, 2025, 78 people died of heroin abuse, while 273 others succumbed to multiple drug use. The victims were aged between 19 and 57 years. The highest number of such deaths was reported in 2023, with 76 fatalities, followed by 67 each in 2020 and 2024. From January to August 8, 2025, alone, 51 people, including seven women, died of drug abuse, he added. Among the state’s 11 districts, Aizawl reported the highest number of deaths at 274, followed by Lunglei with 69 and Champhai, bordering Myanmar, with 58. Hnahthial recorded the lowest with just one case. During the same period, the Excise and Narcotics Department seized narcotics worth INR 1,524.3 million, including 212.98 kilograms of heroin, 568.99 kilograms of methamphetamine, and 1,566.66 kilograms of ganja. A total of 4,400 people had been arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Hmar added.
Mizoram has long grappled with drug abuse and trafficking due to its proximity to Myanmar, with which it shares a 510-kilometre porous border. According to Police data, 185 Myanmar nationals have been arrested for drug smuggling between 2020 and May 2025. Chief Minister Lalduhoma had previously linked the inflow of narcotics to Mizoram’s closeness to the Golden Triangle — the region spanning northeastern Myanmar, northwestern Thailand, and northern Laos, infamous for drug production and trafficking.
Similarly, a report released on August 21, 2025 by the Meghalaya Government revealed that between 2020 and 2025, Meghalaya’s ANTF seized drugs worth over INR 4,120 million, including 41 kilograms of heroin, 1,056 kilograms of ganja, two kilograms of opium, 75 kilograms of Yaba tablets, 14 kilograms of crystal meth, 16 kilograms of other psychotropic substances, and 124,906 bottles of codeine syrup. A total of 1,061 individuals were arrested. ANTF Superintendent Giri Prasad M. stated that half of the seized drugs were destroyed at Lumshnong, and noted a rise in seizures over the past three years.
Drawing from the Government of India’s (GoI) most recent records, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) registered 116 major cases between 2020 and May 2025, culminating in the seizure of approximately 109,318 kilograms of drugs. According to the NCB Annual Report 2023-24, enforcement intensity reached new heights, with law enforcement agencies across India – under NCB’s aegis – seizing narcotics valued at approximately ₹25,330 crore in 2024, marking a 55 percent increase from ₹16,100 crore in 2023.
Significantly, the World Drug Report released by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) on May 28, 2025, highlights a sharp escalation in global drug production and use, with 316 million people consuming drugs in 2023 – a rise of nearly 30 per cent over the past decade. The Report reveals an unprecedented surge in synthetic drug production and trafficking from the Golden Triangle, particularly the Shan State in Myanmar. In 2024, East and Southeast Asia recorded 236 tons of methamphetamine seizures, a 24 per cent rise from 2023, indicating massive production beyond what was confiscated. The ongoing crisis in Myanmar, combined with relative stability in drug-producing regions, has created ideal conditions for expansion. Thailand remains the main transit and destination point, while trafficking networks have diversified routes, including Cambodia, Lao PDR, and maritime corridors through Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The Report warns that global instability, organized crime, and advanced trafficking technologies are fuelling these trends, and demands urgent global cooperation and adaptive strategies.
It is significant that there is no consolidated database for narcotics seizures in Northeast India. Agencies such as the State Police, Customs, DRI and NCB maintain separate records for their respective operations, covering different jurisdictions. Consequently, official figures are fragmented and non-comparable. For instance, Customs data for the first half of 2025 indicates narcotics worth INR 571,840,000 were seized, while the DRI reported seizures valued at INR 1,730 million, during the same period. Similarly, State Police and Excise Departments in Mizoram and Meghalaya have reported additional recoveries running into thousands of kilograms and billions of rupees. While individual reports suggest seizures worth several billion rupees across multiple agencies, the absence of integrated data means the true magnitude of narcotics inflows remains underestimated. What is clear, however, is the sharp upward trajectory of trafficking activity, reflected in record-breaking seizures and increasingly sophisticated networks.
On June 26, 2025, Nawal Bajaj, Additional Director General (ADG) of the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), stated that the drug menace in Northeast India was no longer limited to cross-border trafficking, as local synthetic drug production and cyber-enabled markets have surged. Domestic methamphetamine manufacturing – driven by accessible precursor chemicals and online tutorials – has become a major concern, with youths under 28 emerging as key producers and consumers. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools and darknet marketplaces further ease access, making the drug trade highly decentralized.
Law enforcement now leverages advanced data systems such as NCORD (Narcotics Coordination Centre), the National Integrated Database on Arrested Narco-offenders (NIDAAN) database, the Crime & Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS), and dedicated task forces monitoring darknet and crypto-based drug markets. Public reporting is facilitated through platforms such as the Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States (MANAS) helpline, reflecting a multi-layered approach that integrates digital surveillance, inter-agency coordination, and public participation.
The escalating pattern of drug seizures across Northeast India underscores a profound security dilemma, where narcotics trafficking intersects with insurgency, organized crime, and cross-border vulnerabilities. The region’s geographical proximity to the Golden Triangle, coupled with porous borders and socio-political volatility, renders it a critical node in the global narcotics supply chain. While enhanced interdiction efforts – evident in record seizures of heroin, methamphetamine, and synthetic drugs – reflect improved enforcement capacity, they simultaneously expose the magnitude of illicit flows and the adaptive strategies of trafficking networks. The concomitant rise in local production, darknet-enabled trade, and insurgent financing through narcotics, deepens the nexus between drug trafficking and narco-terrorism, undermining state authority and destabilizing fragile socio-economic structures.
This trajectory poses a dual challenge: safeguarding national security while mitigating public health crises associated with drug abuse. The emerging evidence suggests that the battle against narco-terrorism demands, not only intensified law enforcement, but also a comprehensive, multi-sectoral strategy incorporating border management, financial surveillance, international cooperation, and community-driven de-addiction initiatives. Absent such an integrated approach, the Northeast risks entrenchment as both a trafficking hub and a theatre of narco-fuelled insurgency, with implications extending well beyond India’s frontiers into the broader Indo-Myanmar region, as well as global security architectures.
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