AGARTALA, September 29 (TIWN):In a virtual crackdown on the phensedyl business racket operating in Sonamura, the Sonamura Sub-Divisional Administration and Security Agencies have in the last few couple of days jointly launched an unrelenting spate of raids to effectively curb down the illegal business of such intoxicants that have ruined innumerable lives in this border Sub-Division.

 As part of this ongoing drive against the illegal intoxicants, two successive raids were carried out today on 29^th Sept early in the morning at Rangamatia Gram Panchayat under Nalchar R D Block. Headed by the SDM Sonamura Subhasis Das and the BSF DCG Arun Kumar, a joint team of the Sonamura Sub-Divisional Administration, BSF 29 Battalion and Customs Authorities first raided the house of one Gulab Hossain at 5.30 am and its adjoining houses, and recovered huge amount of phensedyl bottles containing the narcotic ingredient codeine phosphate. Close on the heels of the first raid, another raid was carried out in Bairagitilla area of Rangamatia Gram Panchayat, which too led to recovery of substantial amounts of phensedyl bottles from a house reportedly owned by one Alkach Miah. In total, the two successive raids resulted in recovery of 3300 bottles of phensedyl, the market-value of which is estimated to be Rs.9.90 lakh.

All the seized intoxicant-contained bottles will now be destroyed by the Sonamura Sub-Divisional Administration shortly after obtaining permission from the Sepahijala District-based NDPS Committee. From on behalf of the BSF team, R K Mishra, Coy Commander of Dhanpur BOP, Anil Ranwa, Coy Commander of Nirbhoypur BOP, Inspector Nabin Choudhury and Inspector Arun Yadav and other jawans of 29 BSF battalions participated in the raid operations that continued up to 8.00 a.m. On the same day, another raid was carried out by the same team headed by the SDM Sonamura Subhasis Das and the BSF DCG Arun Kumar in Banspukur market of Sonamura from 11.30 a.m. till 12.45 p.m., during which 31 bundles of illegally stocked Indian Sarees was seized from the shop owned by one Harich Miah. The Sarees were packed in convenient bundles so that they can easily be smuggled out across the Indo-Bangla border. On opening the bundles of Sarees, total of 1328 Sarees were recovered, the market value of which works out to Rs.26.56 lakh. All the seized Sarees was then handed over to the Customs officials headed by the Customs Inspector B. K. Singh who was part of the raid-team.