Gujarat: Alprazolam factory busted, 6 arrested with banned drug worth Rs 107 crore

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad arrested six persons with the banned drug worth Rs 107 crore.

Based on a tip-off, the ATS raided the factory on Thursday evening and apprehended six men with 107 kg of alprazolam worth Rs 107 crore, an official said.

The accused had rented a factory near Khambhat town and manufactured alprazolam, a substance used in sleeping pills, PTI reported.

Assistant Commissioner of Police (ATS) Harsh Upadhyay said that alprazolam falls under the purview of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act because of its misuse as a psychotropic substance.

Upadhyay said, “The Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN) issues a licence for the production of alprazolam. This drug also falls under the purview of the NDPS Act. The accused did not have any licence at the time of the raid. Five accused were operating the unit, while the sixth person was the receiver.”

A preliminary probe revealed that the five accused had rented the factory to manufacture the psychotropic substance, he said, adding that investigations are underway.

Read also: 74000 capsules of illicitly diverted pharma drugs seized at Mumbai Airport

Medical Dialogues team has recently reported that Jammu and Kashmir Police recovered 290 bottles of Codeine Phosphate from a house and arrested the accused in Panthachowk area of Srinagar.

Read also:290 bottles of Codeine Phosphate recovered in JnK