Bengaluru: The silicon city of India Bengaluru is fast becoming the narcotics capital of India and the year end rush to dump the city with the narcotic substances for new year celebration is yielding a huge seizure from the anti-narcotic bureau.
The narcotic mafia in Bengaluru is so huge that even the Home Minister Dr G Parameshwar has admitted the menace and said that the government was in the process of eliminating narcotics menace in stages. The opposition leader R Ashok has said that the Bengaluru city was overtaking Mexico city and had already become narcotics heaven.
The narcotics bureau officials themselves admit that the drugs were flowing to Bengaluru from more than 10 countries across Asia and Africa. While major supplies from Asia come through Golden Crescent and Golden Triangle cartels, the mules would transport narcotics through air, water and road transport systems. The African cartel is active through Tanzania, Nigeria and Ivory Coast, where the citizens of those countries come on either education or business visas.
During the last three years, Karnataka has registered over 15,678 narcotics related cases and have arrested over 19,197 people. Interestingly, 211 foreign nationals have been detained in connection with narcotics transport, over 300 foreign nationals have been deported in narcotic related cases. In the last three years, over 19,308 tons of marijuana and 1,244 tons of synthetic narcotics have been confiscated. In 2025 itself, narcotics worth over ₹ 162 crore have been confiscated in Bengaluru city alone.It is not just Bengaluru, the narcotic availability has reached even taluk levels in Karnataka.
The Golden Crescent cartel comprises Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran. While Afghanistan cultivates pure Opium, it would be smuggled in through Punjab and Rajasthan. From there, they are transported to Bengaluru through buses and trains, hiring unassuming people as mules.
The Golden Triangle has Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and Thailand, from where synthetic drugs like Hydro Ganja, Charas and Cocaine are being transported. Of late, smuggling through Bangkok, Phuket and Koulalampur is increasing. Of late. Thailand is becoming one of the biggest destinations, from where the narcotic substances are reaching Bengaluru.
During the last three months, Hydro Ganja worth over₹ 140 crore worth Hydro Ganja has been confiscated, which was brought from Thailand alone. While one parcel was intercepted in a Bengaluru post office, the two were from the tourists, who had returned from Thailand. The police have realised that the drug cartels sponsor free trips to Thailand and use them as mules to smuggle narotics to Bengaluru. Two such couples were arrested at Kempegowda International Airport and re in the jail.
The Golden Triangle countries, after smuggling narcotics into North Eastern States, use labourers as mules to transport narcotics to Bengaluru. A large number of laborers from North East, West Bengal and Odhisha come to Bengaluru and they are used as mules to reach narcotics to Bengaluru.
Realising the alarming level of narcotic supply gripping Karnataka, the State government formed an Anti Narcotics Task Force, which is getting some success. However, the officers working in the Task Force feel that what they have is just the tip of the iceberg.
“We are talking about three or four modules, but the menace has percolated deepi into the system. There is a stiff competition between the African cartel and Golden Triangle cartel when it comes to supplying synthetic narcotics. Both are selling the same products and the African cartel has an edge when it comes to MDMA. We have information about a synthetic narcotics manufacturing unit in Delhi and six months ago, such a manufacturing unit was unearthed in Mysuru city itself. Larger picture is about how such sophisticated narcotics are available even in taluk levels. That means, it is a free flowing substance in our system,” he added.
