Facets of drug trafficking in Manipur, a border state of India: volumes, ethnicity and value
| Date | 05 September 2024 |
| Pages | 142-159 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JMLC-05-2024-0093 |
| Published date | 05 September 2024 |
| Author | Hanjabam Isworchandra Sharma,Shukhdeba Sharma Hanjabam |
Facets of drug trafficking in Manipur,
a border state of India: volumes,
ethnicity and value
Hanjabam Isworchandra Sharma
Department of Economics, Manipur University, Imphal, India, and
Shukhdeba Sharma Hanjabam
Department of Social Work, Indira Gandhi National Tribal University,
Amarkantak, India
Abstract
Purpose –Drug trafficking in the tiny state of Manipur, located in the northeastern part of India bordering
Myanmar, has drawn attentionfrom all over the globe looking at the scale and varieties of drugs trafficked, ranging
from plant-based opiates to synthetic-based amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS). Moreover, drug traffickinginthe
region also comes with many socio-political dynamics such as high per-capita drug consumption, local drug
manufacturing units, terror funding from drug money, politician–drug lord nexus, police–peddler nexus.
Design/methodology/approach –The study is based on data from the years 2007to 2023 accessed from
the Narcotics and Affairs of Borders, a specialized branch of Manipur Police, Government of Manipur. The
study also tries to estimate the state’s drug economy usingthe Financial Action Task Force and the United
Nations Officeon Drugs and Crime methodology.
Findings –The study finds seizure of a massive cache of heroin/brownsugar, and ATS in the past 4–5 years.
The study also finds large-scaledestruction of poppy plants in the state. The study also finds a high percentage
of ethnic minority communitiesinvolved in drug trafficking. The study found the value amounting to US$62m
in 2022. Thestudy also comes across low conviction rates of drugtraffickers in the state.
Originality/value –The study emphasizes the need for expediting the War on Drugs campaign in the state
curtailing poppy cultivation andconviction of drug lords so that the nerve center of terror funding in India’s
eastern frontis kept under control.
Keywords Drug traffickers, Ethnic minority, Poppy cultivation, Narco-terrorism, Drug money
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Global drug trafficking is spreading like wildfire, and it has seriously impacted drug abuse in
many countries and other national security threats in the form of drug-related terrorism
financing. Global drug trafficking involves a complex web of networks operating with
heterogeneous groups and specific routes (Boivin, 2013,2014). Countries sharing common
borders and social proximity enhance drug trafficking, as it reduces the riskand complexity of
trafficking (Giommoni et al., 2017). India is one of the countries that has been hit hard by drug
trafficking, and it is in the geographical vicinity of two international drug hotspots –Myanmar,
The authors would like to acknowledge the anonymous reviewers for their valuable and insightful
comments.
Declarations about funds: The authors do not receive any funds for the study.
Declarations of competing interest: None.
JMLC
28,1
142
Journalof Money Laundering
Control
Vol.28 No. 1, 2025
pp. 142-159
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1368-5201
DOI 10.1108/JMLC-05-2024-0093
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/1368-5201.htm
part of the Golden Triangle, and Afghanistan, the Golden Crescent. A recent report by the
U.N.’sOffice on Drugs and Crime brings out that Afghanistan accounts for a whopping 88% of
global opiate production, followed by Myanmar and Lao with 12% [United Nations Office on
Drugs and Crime (UNODC) 2023]. So, India’s international borders–India–Myanmar Border,
India–Pakistan Border, India–Nepal Border, India–Bhutan Border and India–Bangladesh
Border are the significant routes for the t rafficking of drugs such as heroin, opium, ganja/
marijuana, hashish, tablets (Das, 2012). Border states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab,
Haryana, Rajasthan, Manipur, Mizoram, UP and Bihar are severely affectedby drug trafficking.
The presence of two opium hotspots in Asia –The Golden Triangle and the Golden Crescent has
magnified heroin production and trafficking in the region, which has been documented and analyzed
exhaustively in Chouvy (2011,2013), Renard (1996) and Chin and Zhang (2007),Prayuda (2021)
and Thanh-Luong (2022). Border states of India such as Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir bordering
Pakistan (Das, 2012) and Manipur and Mizoram bordering Myanmar (Tarapot, 1997,Das, 2012)
have seen unprecedented increases in heroin trafficking and consumption. The production and
trafficking of synthetic drug amphetamine-type stimulants (ATS) has been on the mercurial rise and
is on a global scale, especially in countries such as Australia, Italy, USA, India, China and Myanmar
and has attracted many researchers to study its impact on health and society (Gong et al., 2012;
Bright et al., 2012;Rodriguez et al., 2005;Taylor et al., 2011;andDas, 2012).
A number of studies have come forward finding that immigrantsand ethnic minorities are
involved in drug trafficking and peddling (Ruggieroand Khan, 2006;Murji, 2007;Chin and
Zhang, 2007;andPaoli and Reuter, 2008). Terror funding, from the income and revenue
generated from illicit drug trafficking, amalgamated term as narco-terrorism, has been a
grave concern all over the world, especially in conflict-prone areas. (Bjornehed, 2004). The
incessant Kashmir militancy in Indiahas been receiving huge funding from drug trafficking
money (Burger,1995,Jamwal, 2001,Prabha, 2001,Narula, 2022).
Drug trafficking and drug abuse have been a serious concern for the border state of Manipur,
India. Manipur is located in the northeastern part of India, and Northeast India shares 1,640 km with
Myanmar. The state of Manipur shares 400 km with Myanmar and has a porous border where illegal
activities in the form of migration, illegal goods movement smuggling of gold, timber and drugs are
carried out and facilitated by strong trans-border ethnic linkages, political instability and insurgents.
Myanmar is a part of the Golden Triangle, which is notoriousfor the cultivation of contraband crops
such as poppy and the illegal manufacturing of drugs such as heroin and ATS. Illegal drug
trafficking from the Golden Triangle to Manipur is not a recent phenomenon and can be traced back
to the 1970s (ICMR Bulletin, 2008). The opening of border trade in the 1990s has exacerbated, and
many people from the state are involved in drug trafficking (Das, 2012). Data released by Narcotics
Control Bureau (2023), Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India titled as State-wise details
of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances seized by all the Indian Drug Law Enforcement
agencies from January 1, 2018 to May 31, 2023, shows that Manipur ranked 7th in the amount of
heroin seized (2.34% of the total seized), 3rd in opium (16.81% of the total seized) and 2nd in tablets
(34.65% of the total seized) among all the states of India. Apart from drug trafficking, the art of
poppy cultivation has also penetrated the hill areas and border areas of Manipur, which has its roots
in Myanmar, and there has been rampant poppy cultivation in the state in the past decade. The
present paper seeks to analyze the trends of drug trafficking, the composition of drugs, the people
involved in drug trafficking and estimate the values of drug economy of the state.
2. Materials and methods
2.1 Setting and study area
Manipur is a state of India located in the northeasternpart of India that shares an international
border with Myanmar. The geographical area of Manipuris 22,327 sq. km., which is 0.7% of
Journal of Money
Laundering
Control
143
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