Myanmar national arrested with Thailand-grown weed worth Rs 4.5cr

Lucknow: A Myanmar national was caught with over 4.5kg of high-grade hydroponic weed worth about Rs 4.5 crore on the UP-Nepal border in Sonauli area of Maharajganj district.The arrest was made by a joint team of Maharajganj police and Sashastra Seema Bal.Police recovered six packets of weed from the bag of the accused, Phiyo, 30.Sources said Phiyo told police that the consignment was handed over to him in Thailand, from where it was moved to Kathmandu before being trafficked into India via Nepal. Investigators believe the consignment was headed for Delhi, a major consumption and distribution centre for premium-grade cannabis.Officials suspect the involvement of a well-organised international syndicate operating across multiple countries.Phiyo was later handed over to the Narcotics Control Bureau’s Gorakhpur unit for further investigation.SSB officials said they received intelligence inputs that a drug peddler would attempt to cross into India near the border. Acting on the inputs, a special surveillance team was deployed. Within hours, Phiyo was intercepted around 30 metres inside Indian territory. A search of his trolley bag led to the recovery of six packets of hydroponic weed, weighing 4.5kg.Officials said traffickers lure carriers with lucrative payments, reportedly offering up to ₹1 lakh for transporting 500 grams of weed to the national capital.BOXSonauli Border Emerging as HotspotThe Sonauli border has witnessed a string of similar seizures in recent months, raising concerns over its misuse as a preferred trafficking corridor. Over the past six months, agencies have seized narcotics worth crores and arrested multiple accused linked to cross-border networks. In Feb, two youths were held with 8kg of hydroponic weed during a joint operation by SSB and police. They had received the consignment in Kathmandu for delivery in Delhi.