The Andaman and Nicobar Police have started the process of destroying over 6000 kilograms of Methamphetamine worth Rs 36,000 crore seized in ‘India’s largest maritime drug haul’ ever. The drugs are being incinerated in a crematorium furnace in Sri Vijaya Puram, erstwhile Port Blair.
The incineration of drugs is being done under the supervision of Director General of Police of the archipelago, Hargobinder Singh Dhaliwal.
Dhaliwal said that the seized contraband was being incinerated in a crematorium furnace as it was the most effective disposal method which would cause the least pollution. He said that several other methods such as open burning, disposal in water bodies, and soil digging were considered, but given the massive quantity of the drugs, destroying them in a crematorium incinerator turned out to be the ideal way of disposal.
The permission to destroy the drugs in the incinerator was granted by the civic authorities, the DGP said, adding that swift action was made possible due to support from the Home Ministry and the Narcotics Control Bureau.
“Andaman and Nicobar Police have started destroying India’s largest drug seizure of over 6000 kg. Incineration is being done due to the large quantity… We could destroy such a huge quantity in record time due to the support of the Narcotics Control Bureau and the Ministry of Home Affairs as well as local authorities… Pollution generated can be controlled as all other methods like water disposal, open burning or soil digging cause much more pollution than incineration. Permission was taken from the civic authorities for this,” he said.
#WATCH | Port Blair, Andaman & Nicobar | On the destruction of drugs worth Rs 36000 crore seized by police in Sri Vijayapuram, DGP Hargopinder Singh Dhaliwal says, “…Andaman and Nicobar Police have started destroying India’s largest drug seizure of over 6000 kg. Incineration is… pic.twitter.com/vPfEEYkROt
— ANI (@ANI) January 11, 2025
‘India’s Largest Maritime Drug Seizure’
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands police had seized the massive contraband in November last year. It was found on the trawler with six Myanmarese crew members on board near Barren Island in the Andaman Sea and was headed for Thailand. It was seized by the police in Sri Vijayapuram.
Instead of going towards Thailand, the trawler drifted towards the Indian waters after the fishing trawler developed a technical snag, DGP Dhaliwal had said.
The pilot of a Coast Guard Dornier aircraft noticed suspicious movement of the trawler nearly 150 km from Sri Vijya Puram on November 23. He then warned it and asked it to lower its speed. The Andaman and Nicobar Command were alerted by then and the trawler was towed to Sri Vijaya Puram on November 24 for further investigation, news agency PTI reported.
“This major drug haul marks the largest maritime seizure in India’s domain, showcasing exceptional coordination and vigilance,” the Coast Guard said in a post on X.
The six Myanmarese, identified as Kyan Lin Khing, Zay Yar So, Mo Zar Oo, Htet Myat Aung, Zin Min So, and Khin Mg Kyi, were arrested during the drug haul were later booked under various sections of the NDPS Act, 1985, and the Foreigners Act, 1946. They remain under judicial custody as probe is underway.
The drugs were stored in the CID’s central storage room in 222 plastic bags until today. The Special court in Sri Vijaya Puram had approved the pre-trial settlement for the seized contraband on January 3.
