Imphal, August 21: The Narcotics Cell of Imphal West district police today busted a major counterfeit note racket in Imphal West.

88 fake notes worth Rs 43,550 were seized and two persons including a woman were taken into custody.

Official sources said the machines used in churning out the counterfeit notes are of most sophisticated and the notes are the best quality so far the Narcotic Cell had seized in recent times.

Acting on a tip-off, the Narcotics Cell deployed its personnel in civvies along the Sega Road in front of the Hotel Excellency today.

They got the information that a young woman would be coming at the area with a huge quantity of fake notes.

The woman, later identified as Sarangthem Ningol Khaidem Ongbi Mathoi Devi (35) was coming on a rickshaw at 1.40 pm near the Hotel Excellency.

On suspicion the Narcotic Cell personnel stopped her and recovered 87 freshly printed fake Rs 500 crisp notes when they rummaged in her bag.

She was promptly taken into custody, the source said.

Mathoi is a resident of Khuyathong Phugeisnagbam Leikai and wife of one Tombi.

According to the sources, the Narcotic Cell had even tried to nab a distributor by offering Rs 30 lakhs for one crore fake currency notes.

But the idea was abandoned.

On interrogation the woman disclosed the place where the counterfeit notes were printed.

Armed with the information revealed by Mathoi, personnel of the Narcotics Cell rushed to Tera Loukrapam Leikai and raided a house just in front of the Takyel Industrial Estate.

The search revealed a well planned and �most sophisticated� counterfeit note printing system.

�We have busted three counterfeit note rackets, but this is the most sophisticated one and the notes most super,� a personnel said.

During the raid in M/S Computer Printing owned by Potsangbam Ananda (37) son of Nodiachand, the personnel recovered one fake Rs 50 note yet to be cut and trimmed.

The main accused, Ananda had been using costly computer system and printing machines to print fake notes.

The raiding party seized one computer system, two laser printer including one colour printer, three other scanner and one UPS, the sources said.

Interestingly the computer farm is financed by the National Small Industries Corporation, Government of India.

Crews of ICTV were shocked when they discovered several leaves of �fake letter head� of the local cable TV network.

Sources said that a huge amount of fake notes printed by this racket had already found their way to Moreh and Tamu of Myanmar.

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