18 Held, ₹100 Crore Traced In Northeast Drug Raids: Govt., Pg1

Key Highlights:

• Enforcement agencies conducted "Operation Trident" across 38 locations in Assam, Mizoram, and Manipur on October 23, 2026, targeting an international narco-cartel.
• The operation led to the arrest of 18 individuals and uncovered ₹100 crore in "hawala" transactions.
• Authorities froze 1,424 bank accounts and attached properties worth ₹17.82 crore, along with seizing 500 detonators and ₹12 lakh in cash.
• The network trafficked narcotics across India, Myanmar, and Bangladesh via the "Death Triangle Corridor."
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated the anti-narcotics team, reaffirming India's goal to eradicate all drug networks by December 31, 2029.

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Detailed Insights:

• Operation Trident was spearheaded by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in coordination with State police forces and the Directorate of Enforcement (ED).
• The coordinated action covered major urban centers and sensitive border corridors, including Aizawl, Champhai, and Zokhawthar in Mizoram, Churachandpur in Manipur, and the Cachar region of Assam.
• The ED conducted searches under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, investigating the trafficking of heroin, brown sugar, and methamphetamine from Myanmar.
• Drug money generated in Manipur, Mizoram, Assam, and Tripura was routed back to border towns in Mizoram to settle with Myanmar-based suppliers.
• The trafficking corridor, particularly the Champhai-Zokhawthar sector of Mizoram, functions as a two-way street for drugs and money.
• Myanmar-based organizers used local carriers and various concealment methods, with payments routed through Champhai "hawala" accounts.
• In Manipur's Churachandpur, syndicate operatives collected cash and channeled funds into the banking system via mini-ATM/customer service point counters.
• One such counter, code-named "Nuniang," facilitated 2,947 transfers totaling ₹175.03 crore between 2024 and June 2026.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Hawala: An informal, trust-based system for transferring money without physical movement of cash or use of formal banking channels.
• Narco-hawala: The use of the hawala system specifically for laundering proceeds from illegal narcotics trafficking.
• Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002: An Indian law enacted to prevent money laundering, confiscate property derived from it, and combat related economic crimes.