India seizes Middle East drug Captagon worth Rs182cr for first time, says home ministry
The Captagon mainly contains Fenetylline and Amphetamine which are psychotropic substances under the Indian law
India's anti-narcotics sleuths have unearthed an international syndicate and recovered for the first time Captagon, a psychotropic substance used in the Middle East region.
"This is the first-ever seizure of Captagon in India," the Indian home ministry said today (16 May) in a statement, adding the authorities arrested an overstaying Syrian national who is allegedly a member of the drug syndicate.
The Syrian was staying in a rented house in Delhi.
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The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) personnel seized a consignment weighing about 227.7 kilograms of Captagon in tablets and powder form worth Rs182 crore.
The Captagon mainly contains Fenetylline and Amphetamine which are psychotropic substances under the Indian law.
Indian Home Minister Amit Shah said Captagon was destined for the Middle East.
Following information received from a foreign drug law enforcement agency that India is being used as transit for trafficking of Captagon, a house was identified in New Delhi and a search of the house on 11 May led to recovery of about 31.5 Kg Captagon tablets concealed in a 'chapatti' (roti) cutting machine which preliminary investigation suggests was intended for export to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the Syrian national had entered India on a tourist visa on 15 November 2024, but his visa expired on 112 January 2025 and he was illegally overstaying in India and had taken the said house in Delhi on rent.
Questioning of the accused further led to recovery of about 196.2 kilograms of Captagon powder from a container in Container Facilitation Station (CFS) at Mundra, Gujarat on 14 May.
The container was imported from Syria with sheep wool as a declared consignment.
A thorough search of the container led to recovery of three bags containing 196.2 kilograms of Captagon powder.
Preliminary investigation has revealed the seized consignment was intended for transshipment to the Gulf region, particularly Saudi Arabia and neighbouring Middle Eastern countries where Captagon abuse has emerged as a serious law enforcement and public health concern.
The seizure also assumes significance in light of another recent recovery of 349 kilograms of cocaine concealed in a container originating from Ecuador, indicating an increasing trend of transnational drug syndicates misusing commercial cargo and containerised trade routes for trafficking narcotic substances across regions, the home ministry said in its statement.
The NCB has initiated a comprehensive investigation to identify the source of procurement, financial and hawala linkages, logistics facilitators, international receivers and the wider transnational network associated with the drug syndicate.
