 "Psychotropic drugs worth Rs 60 crore seized by NCB")
In two separate raids in Vadodara and Mumbai, the Ahmedabad Zonal Unit of Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has seized psychotropic substances priced at around Rs 60 crore in international market.
The raids were carried out last week at the premises of Dolphin Pharama in Vadodara and at KC Pharma in Andheri in Mumbai, Ahmedabad-NCB director Hari Om Gandhi said on Tuesday.
"Our team first raided office and residential premises of Dolphin Pharma in Vadodara on August 9. We have recovered 9 lakh tablets of various psychotropic substance, having street value of Rs 50 crore in international market. We had arrested company's director Anil Luhar and manager Zahid Shaikh for the illegal possession of the drug," Gandhi told reporters.
According to officials, these psychotropic substances include Oxycodone, which is used as painkiller; Zolpidem, used for insomnia, and Alprazolam, a prescription drug to treat anxiety disorder.
The company had not taken any licence for manufacture, storage of sale of the such drugs, he said.
Since these drug formulations are also abused as psychotropic drugs; the manufacturing, sale and possession of these substances are regulated under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, said Gandhi.
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"During interrogation of Luhar and Shaikh, we have learned that the company have acquired some of the substances illegally purchased from Mumbai based KC Pharma. Based on this information, we along with Mumbai NCB raided the company premises in Andheri and recovered another cache worth Rs 10 crore," Gandhi added.
The NCB also arrested company director Kishan Chaudhary and manager Murugan and brought them to Vadodara for further investigation. The duo along with Luhar and Shaikh are now behind bars, said Gandhi.
"We are now investigation the modus operandi of the accused as well as their links with drug dealers and other manufacturers of India and abroad. It is very likely that some more persons would be arrested soon," added the officer.
The Ahmedabad Zonal Unit of NCB has jurisdiction comprising Gujarat state and Union Territories of Daman and Diu, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli.