Tripura’s 107 km-long boundary with Mizoram is a cause
of concern for law enforcement agencies as most of the drugs from Myanmar enter
the State through that border.
Vigil has been stepped up along the border between the
two northeastern neighbours to prevent drug trafficking, said North Tripura
district Superintendent of Police Bhanupada Chakraborty which shares the
boundary with Mizoram.
“Law enforcement agencies are working hard to curb
drug trafficking but smuggling of drugs especially heroin continues along the
inter-state border,” said Chakraborty on Monday.
Chief Minister Manik Saha has declared a war against
increasing drug trafficking and law enforcement agencies have adopted a
zero-tolerance policy to curb the drug menace.
Till August 2023, a total of 746 people were booked in
connection with 445 Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) cases and
contraband items including heroin amounting to ₹ 91.84 crore was seized during
the period, according to a police report.
“Myanmar appears a potential threat to the war against
drugs declared by Tripura… We are sure these drugs are coming from Myanmar.
Mizoram is just a transit point as far as drug trafficking is concerned,” the
police officer said.
According to Chakraborty, drug mafias sometimes also
use Silchar-Churaibari (entry point to Tripura from Assam) to transport drug
items.
“We often foiled drug smuggling under Churaibari
police station despite having severe staff constraints. The police need to be
strengthened further to intensify war against the drug trafficking”, the SP
said.
“Police have sent two or three teams to Mizoram in
connection with some specific NDPS cases but they did not make much progress as
the origin of the drug peddlers could not be found. In the course of
interrogation and probe, we came to know that Mizoram border is being used as a
safe corridor for trafficking drugs to the state,” said Damcherra police
station Officer in Charge Raju Bhowmik.
Three police stations – Damcherra, Khedacherra and
Vangmum – share 107 km inter-State border with Mizoram with a skeleton staff.
“At present, Damcherra police station has only two
sub-inspectors along with one inspector and six to eight constables and some
Tripura State Rifles (TSR) jawans. It is very difficult to maintain close
control at Nripen Chakraborty setu (bridge) which connects Mizoram’s Mamit
district to Damcherra in North Tripura,” the OC said.
The bridge over river Longai connects Tripura and
Mizoram.
Bhowmik said, “We require adequate staff to maintain
strict vigil at the entry point to Damcherra. Around 40/50 vehicles are coming
to Damcherra through the bridge daily. If we want to check all vehicles, more
policemen are needed at the check gate at Damcherra”.
Taking advantage of skeleton police presence, the drug
mafia are using Damcherra to smuggle drugs along with goods to the northeastern
state, he said.
North Tripura, Chief Medical Officer Dr Arunabh
Chakraborty said the number of injected drug users among the inmates of
Bruhapra resettlement village (Bru camp) under Damcherra police station has
been on the rise over the past few years.
“… Tripura State AIDS Control Society is working in
the field to check the menace. We have identified some potential pockets of
drug users and opened two Oral Substitution Therapy clinics in two Public
Health Centres at Jampui Hills (Vangmun) and Damcherra to provide them medical
attention”, he said.
Meanwhile, the Narcotics Control Bureau will soon have
a zonal-level office in Agartala to curb drug and narcotics trafficking
effectively, officials said.
PTI
