‘Operation White Veil’: Drugs worth ₹55.5 crore seized in Manipur, five arrested in cross-border crackdown

In one of the largest coordinated drug enforcement actions in Manipur this year, Indian security and enforcement agencies seized contraband valued at over ₹55.52 crore during a meticulously executed joint operation codenamed Operation White Veil.

Conducted between June 5 and 7 in the sensitive border district of Churachandpur, the operation involved the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Customs, 37 Battalion Assam Rifles, and Manipur Police, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Finance.

The teams seized 7,755.75 grams of heroin, estimated to be worth ₹54.29 crore, and 6,736 grams of opium valued at ₹87.57 lakh in the international grey market. Additionally, unaccounted cash amounting to ₹35.63 lakh, two Baofeng walkie-talkies, and a Maruti Eeco van were confiscated, according to the press release. “Five individuals were arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985…the NDPS Act imposes stringent penalties, including rigorous imprisonment of up to ten years, for drug-related offences,” reads the release.

The operation began in the early hours of June 6, when intelligence inputs led officials to intercept a Maruti Eeco van at Behiang village along the Myanmar border. A subsequent search at a residence in Thadou Veng, Singngat Sub-Division, yielded 219 soap cases of heroin and opium packed in eight packages and 18 small tins. One individual was arrested at the site, while two others, who had fled, were later apprehended at the Bualkot Check Gate.

Further searches uncovered additional packages of opium and over ₹28 lakh in cash from a second residence linked to the accused. The investigation took another critical turn on June 7, when two individuals carrying manpacks were intercepted near Zoukhonuam village close to Border Pillar 46. A search of the backpacks revealed another cache of 440 soap cases filled with heroin. 

Preliminary investigations suggest that the contraband was smuggled into India through the porous and forested Indo-Myanmar border, a well-known trafficking corridor. Despite the region's logistical and security challenges, the successful operation highlights the enhanced inter-agency cooperation and the ongoing efforts to curb narcotics trafficking in India’s Northeastern region.

The Indo-Myanmar border stretches over 1,600 km, much of it unfenced and densely forested, particularly in Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh. The difficult terrain and lack of surveillance infrastructure allow traffickers to use mule routes, foot trails, and even pack animals to transport drugs. 

Myanmar has become a major source of meth tablets and crystalline meth, smuggled into India via Manipur and Mizoram. Women and even minors are being increasingly used as “mules” to transport drugs hidden in body cavities or vehicles. Sophisticated trafficking methods using encrypted communication, GPS-guided drops, and sometimes drone deliveries have been reported.