One lakh Yaba tablets worth Rs 8 crore seized in Tripura, one arrested

The Assam Rifles and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) jointly seized around one lakh methamphetamine tablets worth Rs 8 crore and arrested one person in Tripura’s Khowai district on Saturday. Security personnel, acting on intelligence inputs, stopped a Mahindra pick-up vehicle in the Mungiakami area and found the tablets inside. The drugs are commonly known as Yaba tablets.

The arrested person is Kauchar Hussain, 28, from Jatan Bari in Gomati district. He was handed over to the DRI along with the seized drugs for investigation and legal proceedings.

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Officials said the drugs were smuggled from Myanmar and brought through Mizoram and southern Assam before entering Tripura. The consignment was meant to be sent further into Bangladesh.

Mizoram’s six districts Champhai, Siaha, Lawngtlai, Hnahthial, Saitual, and Serchhip are frequently used as transit routes for such smuggling. Mizoram shares a 510 km unfenced border with Myanmar and a 318 km border with Bangladesh. Tripura borders Bangladesh on three sides with an 856 km international boundary. This makes both states vulnerable to cross-border smuggling.

What are Yaba tablets?

Yaba tablets contain methamphetamine mixed with caffeine. Methamphetamine is stimulant drug that speeds up central nervous system. Users feel a rush of energy and euphoria followed by hard crash. The drug is highly addictive.

The caffeine is added to dilute the methamphetamine. The tablets are often brightly coloured and flavoured, which makes them attractive to younger users.

Yaba is nicknamed the “crazy drug” and is also called “party tablets.” Myanmar is a major source of the drug. It is banned in India.