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A total of 4,626 kg of Amphetamine Type Stimulants (ATS) and 2,652 kg of Heroin were seized in India's North-East between 2021 and 2025, as reported by Drug Law Enforcement Agencies to the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
The North-Eastern States remain vulnerable due to their proximity to the 'Death Triangle'/Golden Triangle and porous, Free Movement Regime borders with Myanmar; trafficking has shifted markedly towards synthetic drugs like methamphetamine.
Government has released a Vision Document on Narcotics Control (2026-2029), set up a 4-tier NCORD coordination mechanism, and approved 6 new NCB Zonal offices, 4 of them in North-Eastern States.
Data was given by Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai in a written Rajya Sabha reply.
The principal law under which the NCB and State DLEAs seize drugs, and arrest and prosecute traffickers — the basis for the NCRB data cited
Apex central agency coordinating enforcement against illicit drug trafficking and abuse, established under the NDPS Act
Coordinated roadmap for anti-narcotics action across Ministries, States and UTs
Key: Released 26.06.2026; four focus areas — Enforcement, Precursors & Synthetic Drugs Control, Demand & Harm Reduction, Capacity Building & Coordination
Vertical coordination between Central and State drug-law-enforcement agencies
Key: 4-tier structure — Apex & Executive Committees at the Centre; State-level (Chief Secretary, quarterly); District-level (District Magistrate, monthly)
Dedicated State-level force acting as the NCORD Secretariat
Key: Headed by an Additional Director General/Inspector General-rank police officer in each State/UT
The Golden Triangle is the opium- and methamphetamine-producing region where Myanmar, Thailand and Laos converge — historically named for the 'black gold' opium trade and popularised by the CIA in the 1970s. Policy commentary increasingly calls it the 'Death Triangle' as the region has shifted from opium towards synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine (Yaba/Crystal Meth). India's North-Eastern States, which border Myanmar, sit adjacent to this region and form the principal transit corridor for ATS and heroin entering India.
Simple Analogy: A drug-producing hotspot for South-East Asia much like the coca-growing regions of Latin America — except the trade here has shifted from a plant-based drug (opium) to lab-made synthetic ones.
The visa-free border movement arrangement with Myanmar has been cited by MHA as one factor facilitating trafficking, along with unfenced border stretches
NCB coordinates with I4C as traffickers increasingly use encrypted apps, social media and courier/parcel networks for coordination
NCB conducts joint operations with the Navy, Coast Guard and BSF to intercept trafficking by sea and land routes
GS Paper 3 > Internal Security > Linkages of Organised Crime with Terrorism / Border Management
The Parliament passed the Marine Aids to Navigation Bill, 2021 to repeal and replace which of the following Acts?
Answer: The Lighthouse Act, 1927
Which of the following is NOT an amendment made to the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) Amendment Act, 2021?
Answer: It privatizes all major airports immediately
Recurring — Parliament regularly receives updated NE narcotics data
Narco-Coordination Centre — the 4-tier Centre-to-District mechanism coordinating anti-drug enforcement
Arrangement allowing visa-free movement across the India-Myanmar border within a limited range, cited as a trafficking-facilitating factor