Record opium haul amid growing anti-drug vows
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: July 15, 2022 -

THE biggest seizure of 136 kilograms of opium and recovery of 218 sacks of 'Poppy Straw' respectively in Imphal West district and Bishnupur district within a span of 12 hours signify plantation of poppy on a large scale in the state.

Interestingly, both the seizures were made from trucks bearing registration numbers of distant Rajasthan and this also corroborates existence of a clandestine network between poppy planters or traders in the state and drug smugglers or illegal manufacturers in other states or even in the neighbouring countries.

The 136.03 kg opium consignment recovered by a team of Imphal West district police commandos from Minuthong area on Tuesday evening was the biggest haul in the state so far while seizure of the huge consignment of poppy straw was never heard of before.

Both seizures not only indicate dangerous proportion of poppy plantation in the state but also put a question mark on integrity and diligence of law enforcement personnel stationed in the interior pockets, which are known locations for poppy cultivation.

The value of the seized opium consignment is estimated at Rs 10 crore in the international market and it broke the previous record of 88.45 kg confiscated on April 4, 2020 from Irang Part 1 under Kangpokpi district.

While investigation into the seizure and interrogation of the arrested person identified as Saddhik Mohammad (44) of Rajasthan are underway to trace origin of the opium, frequency of recovery of opium, apart from heroin and other psychotropic drugs, in the past few years indicates that some wealthy individuals or publicly-dreaded organisations remain the toughest challenge in winning the 'war on drugs' campaign of the government.

As per survey reports of drug-control agencies, one pari (a little over three acres) of land can produce 5-7 kg of opium, which means that the 136 kg opium seized from the Rajasthan truck were not planted and harvested from a single area.

The price of opium in the international market far exceeds the earnings from cultivation of agricultural and horticultural crops from the same land size and as such it is obvious that to the marginalised rural people, nothing would be more appealing than poppy cultivation.

Moreover, proximity to the infamous Golden Triangle is often cited as a major factor for the proliferation of different forms of banned drugs in Manipur with official records from the NCB confirming that the Crude product of poppy grown in Manipur is smuggled out through the porous Indo-Myanmar border.

Other survey reports published in 1998 also stated that Myanmar accounted for 65 per cent of the global opium cultivation.

However, in view of the fertile soil, vast economic disparity and availability of cheap labour in the remote hilly areas of Manipur, all of which favour poppy cultivation, there might come a time when this tiny state gains notoriety as one of the largest producers of opium.

The seizure o'f opium at regular intervals amid village authorities and civil organisations vowing to prohibit poppy plantation in their respective areas leaves nothing to doubt that Manipur is turning into a haven for poppy cultivation and there is no longer the need to transport the drug-making ingredient anywhere else if one takes note of the busting of heroin and brown sugar manufacturing units fpund operating in different parts of the state.