Mega Drug Lab Busted In Bhopal, Second In Less Than A Year

A sprawling illegal drug factory was busted in Bhopal on Monday, adding to concerns about the Madhya Pradesh capital emerging as a hub for the production and trade of synthetic narcotics.

The lab, in Jagdishpur, near Islamnagar on the outskirts of Bhopal, was raided by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). As part of Operation 'Crystal Break', the DRI, assisted by the Surat and Mumbai Police, seized 61.2 kg of mephedrone (MD) and 541.53 kg of precursor chemicals, worth Rs 162 crore. Seven people, who were allegedly working for a foreign drug kingpin, were arrested.

In October last year, another drug factory was uncovered in the Bagroda Industrial Area, near Katara Hills in Bhopal. That operation, led by the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad and the Narcotics Control Bureau in Delhi, exposed a syndicate producing 907 kg of mephedrone valued at over Rs 1,800 crore.

The so-called fertiliser unit was a high-tech drug manufacturing den, and the local police were in the dark.

The latest raids weren't limited to Madhya Pradesh, and simultaneous crackdowns in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra revealed a cartel - a key player arrested from Basti in UP was managing chemical supplies from Mumbai to Bhopal, two transport and supply handlers were caught in Mumbai, and a hawala operator was arrested, revealing the financial arteries that fuelled the syndicate.

After the 2024 Bagroda bust, NDTV had launched a city-wide sting operation from the crowded streets of Itwara and Budhwara, to the posh Bitten Market and 74 Bungalows, home to the who's who of the city. The sting found drugs, including brown sugar, MDMA, hashish and ganja, being sold openly even by children and the elderly.

The recent arrests of a Nigerian national and a Thai woman in connection with the MDMA network run by the uncle-nephew duo of Shahwar Ahmed and Yasin Ahmed, experts said, are further proof that Bhopal is no longer just a transit city but a base for drug production.