The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has intensified its crackdown on illegal psychotropic drug networks, conducting raids on three pharmaceutical companies located in Baddi and Nalagarh, Himachal Pradesh. These raids are part of a broader investigation into a multi-state drug trafficking operation.

Key highlights
Raids linked to money laundering case

• ED Jalandhar conducted searches at 16 locations across six states including Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, UP, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra.

• Premises of Smilax Pharmachem Drug Industries, Biogenetic Drugs Pvt Ltd, and CB Healthcare were raided in the Baddi-Nalagarh industrial area.

Seizures and evidence

• Officials confiscated incriminating documents, mobile phones, laptops, and digital records to establish the financial trail of illegal drug sales.

• The investigation is based on FIRs registered by Punjab Police under the NDPS Act, 1985.

Scale of psychotropic drug diversion

• Smilax Pharmachem was earlier found manufacturing 20 crore alprazolam tablets in eight months, raising serious red flags.

• The firm also procured 6,500 kg of tramadol powder in a single year both drugs are tightly regulated under the NDPS Act.

Modus operandi and black market sales

• Middlemen procured large volumes of psychotropic tablets from manufacturers and sold them in black markets at inflated prices through peddlers, generating illegal profits.

• These actions violated mandatory SOPs requiring manufacturers to report drug consignment details to state drug controllers and police before dispatch.

Regulatory action

• Following raids in 2024 by Punjab’s Special Task Force (STF), drug manufacturing permissions were cancelled for several firms found violating dual-regulation norms under the NDPS and Drugs & Cosmetics Acts.

This latest enforcement action by the ED further exposes the depth of illegal diversion in India’s pharmaceutical sector, especially in high-volume manufacturing hubs like Baddi. Authorities are expected to take stringent action against the firms and individuals involved, as the investigation progresses.