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Smuggling in India Report 2024-25 16

Drug TraĜcking Landscape in India

a. Major drug types traĜcked

Given its geographical location, India is emerging as a major hub for drug traffick-
ing—serving both as a transit point and as a destination for various illicit drugs.
The major drug types trafficked in India are depicted below.

Cocaine

Pseudoephedrine Heroin

Alprazolam Methamphetamine

Mephedrone Cannabis/
Hydroponic Weed

Hashish
b. Geographic hotspots

In India, Punjab and Gujarat serve as key entry points for drugs from the Golden
Crescent (Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran) with Punjab increasingly witnessing
drone-based narcotics smuggling across the Pakistan border. The Northeastern
Region, particularly Manipur and Mizoram with their porous borders with
Myanmar, serves as the main gateway for heroin and methamphetamine (in the
form of Yaba tablets) from the Golden Triangle (Myanmar, Laos, Thailand). Illicit
narcotics trafficking networks based in South America, Africa, and the Middle East
continue to target India as a key destination and transit point.

Major metropolitan airports remain the most vulnerable points for drug smug-
gling through air routes. However, syndicates have increasingly begun exploiting
Tier-II airports for the movement of drugs such as hydroponic weed and synthetic
drugs.

Further, States such as Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh have become
hotspots for setting up clandestine laboratories to produce synthetic drugs and
precursors such as mephedrone and alprazolam.

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