A multi-agency crackdown across Assam, Mizoram and Manipur traced hawala flows linked to drug trafficking from Myanmar, with the Home Ministry setting a 2029 deadline to end drug networks.

BulletsIn

• Central agencies and state police carried out simultaneous raids at 38 locations across Assam, Mizoram and Manipur under Operation Trident.
• The operation led to 18 arrests and the detection of Rs 100 crore in hawala transactions tied to an international narco-hawala network.
• It was led by the Narcotics Control Bureau, working with state police and the Directorate of Enforcement.
• The Union Home Ministry said 1,424 bank accounts were frozen and assets worth Rs 17.82 crore attached.
• Officials also seized 500 detonators and Rs 12 lakh in cash during the raids.
• Searches covered Aizawl, Champhai and Zokhawthar in Mizoram, Churachandpur in Manipur, and the transit corridor in Assam's Cachar region.
• The ED said drugs moved along the India-Myanmar-Bangladesh "Death Triangle Corridor" through local carriers hired by Myanmar-based organisers, with payments routed through hawala.
• In Churachandpur, drug cash entered the banking system through mini-ATM and customer service point counters.
• One such counter, code-named "Nuniang", made 2,947 transfers worth Rs 175.03 crore between 2024 and June 2026.
• Home Minister Amit Shah called the operation a "lethal blow" to drug networks and said the aim is to eradicate them by December 31, 2029.
• The case shows how agent-banking touchpoints built for financial inclusion can be misused, making anti-money-laundering monitoring vital there.