HT Digital,
Guwahati , 03 Nov: The Narcotics Control Bureau has uncovered a major cross-border drug route after seizing high-grade heroin worth ₹12.5 crore in southern Assam on Dec 1. Officials said the consignment was trafficked from Myanmar and pushed through Manipur’s forest belts before entering Assam via a little-monitored river channel.
According to a senior NCB officer, the bust followed weeks of intelligence gathering by the Guwahati Zonal Unit, supported by the CRPF and Assam Police. The agencies tracked the movement of the drug shipment as it travelled through remote zones and eventually boarded small motorboats along the Barak river. Investigators said traffickers are increasingly shifting to river routes to slip past checkpoints and surveillance systems.
The team intercepted an indigenous motorboat near Silchar in Cachar district and detained two men from the area. A search of the country boat revealed 6.149 kg of heroin packed in 530 soap cases and concealed under bamboo layers. Officials said the method showed an attempt to disguise the consignment as everyday cargo.
Both detainees will be produced before court along with the seized material. Early findings suggest the heroin began its journey in Myanmar, crossed Manipur’s forest corridors, and was headed towards the Hmarkhawlien–Fulertal–Lakhipur stretch, a zone now under sharper watch.
NCB officers said the operation is a key step in disrupting a network that depends on vulnerable inland waterways to push narcotics across the Myanmar–Manipur–Assam corridor. They added that the successful interception signals growing focus on riverine surveillance as drug syndicates attempt to diversify their routes.






