Pakistan-routed methamphetamine worth Rs 25 crore busted in joint strike by Gujarat, Rajasthan ATS

Ahmedabad: A cross-border drug pipeline running from Pakistan's Tharparkar region into Rajasthan has been cracked open by a joint operation of Gujarat and Rajasthan anti-terrorism squads (ATS). Two men from Rajasthan were caught on National Highway 68 carrying approximately 5 kg of methamphetamine worth Rs 25 crore.Smuggled across the Pakistan border, the drugs were allegedly en route for distribution inside India. Investigators are now working to dismantle the wider syndicate behind the haul.The arrested men, Shankarram Rameshram and Salman Lalakhan, are both residents of Sajan Ka Par village in the Ramsar area of Barmer district, said Gujarat ATS officers on Tuesday.The operation began after Gujarat ATS received specific intelligence that the two were transporting a methamphetamine consignment smuggled in from across the Pakistan border. Acting on the input, senior officers directed the formation of a special team. They looped in Rajasthan ATS, turning it into a coordinated interstate operation.The joint team set up intensive patrolling and nakabandi along NH-68, which connects Jaisalmer in Rajasthan to Banaskantha in Gujarat. On Monday evening, they intercepted a suspicious Eeco during routine checks. Inside, they found the two accused carrying a yellow bag with five transparent packets of a banned substance. Field tests confirmed it as methamphetamine.Both men were immediately arrested. A case has been registered at Sadar Barmer police station under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.During interrogation, the accused revealed that the drugs were smuggled from Pakistan by a handler named Masaat, believed to be a resident of the Tharparkar region of Pakistan. The consignment was allegedly dropped in the Barmer district, from where the two men collected it for onward distribution.Investigators recovered critical digital evidence, including WhatsApp chats, call records, and videos, from the accused's phones. Authorities say this could help crack open the wider network. Efforts are now underway to identify other members of the syndicate and trace the full distribution chain.