Gogoi urges PM to take action to combat narcotics smuggling from Myanmar

Congress deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi, has called upon Prime Minister Narendra Modi to take "decisive action" to address the widespread smuggling of narcotics from Myanmar into India.

Gogoi emphasised that this illicit activity not only poses a threat to national security but also presents severe health risks to citizens.

Recent media coverage has shed light on the alarming frequency of truck entries at Merapani border in Assam, indicating that smuggled Myanmar-origin areca nuts, colloquially known as Burmese supari, are making their way to our country through the porous India-Myanmar border in Mizoram and Manipur, the Assam MP said in a letter to the Prime Minister on Tuesday.

Subsequently, these smuggled areca nuts find their way to Nagaland from where they are distributed to gutkha industries in Kanpur, Lucknow and West Bengal and these activities are conducted with blatant disregard for customs duties and regulations, he added.

Other drugs such as heroin, opium, Yaba tablets, morphine, methamphetamine tablets, along with a huge number of foreign currencies are also being smuggled from the neighbouring country allegedly by using oil tankers as a means of transportation, the Congress MP said.

'The implications of this illegal trade are manifold, leading to significant revenue loss for the government, posing threat to public health and it is also alleged that there is political involvement in this illegal activity", Gogoi said.

He urged the PM to take decisive action to combat this smuggling effectively by 'strengthening border security, enhancing surveillance measures and cracking down on smuggling networks'.

Additionally, strict enforcement of customs regulations and penalties for those involved in smuggling activities are imperative to deter future illicit trade, Gogoi added.