3 weeks ago
DRI Busts Illegal Tramadol Export Network, Seizes 2 Lakh Tablets
Some medicines are so strong and dangerous that only doctors are allowed to give them to sick people.
Tramadol and Tapentadol are pain medicines that people can misuse.
Bad people tried to secretly send 200,000 of these tablets to another country.
Customs officers in Mumbai, India, found the hidden tablets.
The tablets were hidden in a box that was supposed to contain a different medicine.
Secret workers made the tablets in a hidden factory in a place called Ambernath.
Officers also found the machines used to make the tablets.
Three people were arrested for their part in this secret plan.
The tablets were meant to go to Nigeria, a country in Africa.
Sending these medicines secretly is against the law because they can be very harmful.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) intercepted a Nigeria-bound export consignment at the Mumbai Air Cargo Complex on August 2 that was declared as containing Pregabalin Capsules-300 mg.
Officers seized 1 lakh Tramadol Hydrochloride Tablets of 250 mg and 1 lakh Tapentadol Tablets of 200 mg concealed inside the consignment.
The Tramadol tablets were clandestinely manufactured at a factory in Ambernath and packed in plain cartons to conceal their identity.
Consignments were repacked in white gunny bags at a warehouse near the Mumbai Air Cargo Complex before being prepared for illegal export to Nigeria.
Three key accused were arrested, including the IEC holder/exporter, the supplier-cum-coordinator, and the clandestine manufacturer, along with seizure of machinery and raw materials.
- Who
- Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officers and three accused persons linked to the syndicate, including the IEC holder/exporter, supplier-cum-coordinator, and clandestine manufacturer.
- What
- A week-long intelligence-led operation seized 2 lakh opioid tablets and exposed an organised network involved in clandestine manufacture, concealment, and illegal export of scheduled psychotropic substances.
- Where
- Mumbai Air Cargo Complex, with the manufacturing facility in Ambernath and a repacking warehouse near the air cargo complex.
- When
- The consignment was intercepted on August 2, with a week of coordinated follow-up operations reportedly culminating around August 10, 2026.
- Why
- To dismantle a transnational network illegally exporting synthetic opioid analgesics, which pose a serious public health concern and are linked to organised drug trafficking.
Key facts
- Seized Quantity
- 1 lakh Tramadol Hydrochloride Tablets (250 mg, ~25 kg) and 1 lakh Tapentadol Tablets (200 mg, ~20 kg)
- Destination
- Nigeria
- Declared Contents
- Pregabalin Capsules-300 mg
- Interception Location
- Mumbai Air Cargo Complex
- Interception Date
- August 2
- Arrests
- 3 key accused (IEC holder/exporter, supplier-cum-coordinator, clandestine manufacturer)
- Manufacturing Location
- Ambernath
- Legal Status
- Tramadol notified under NDPS Act; Tapentadol regulated under Drugs and Cosmetics Act
Sources
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