Himalaya Harbinger Uttarakhand Bureau.
In a massive anti-narcotics operation, the joint police team of Champawat and Pithoragarh, acting under the firm leadership of IG Kumaon Range Ridhim Aggarwal, recovered 5.688 kg of MDMA (commonly known as ‘MD’ or ecstasy) worth ₹10.23 crore from a woman near the Indo-Nepal border early Saturday morning.
The crackdown was carried out around 5:45 AM near the Sharda Canal (Gadhighat bridge, Pampapur) during a routine border patrol. The 14-member police team, supervised by DySP Vandana Verma and led by SOG in-charge Laxman Singh Jagwan and SHO Surendra Singh Koranga, spotted a woman fleeing suspiciously with a black backpack. Upon stopping her and conducting a search in the presence of DySP Verma, the team found two packets of MDMA — 3.424 kg of brown crystalline substance and 2.263 kg of white granular substance.
The accused, 22-year-old Isha, wife of Rahul Kumar, a resident of Pampapur village under Banbasa police station in Champawat, was taken into custody under the NDPS Act. According to the police, she confessed that the drugs were handed to her by her husband Rahul and his associate Kunal Kohli from Pithoragarh on June 27. Both men are currently absconding and wanted in a case registered in Thane, Maharashtra. Isha revealed she was on her way to dispose of the contraband in the canal on her husband’s instructions due to rising police pressure in the region.
IG Kumaon Ridhim Aggarwal, who recently directed tighter surveillance along the Indo-Nepal border following a similar bust involving Mumbai and Thane Police, awarded the Champawat police team with a cash reward of ₹20,000. “This is the largest MDMA seizure in Uttarakhand and a crucial breakthrough in dismantling the drug network linked to the Pithoragarh factory nexus. We are committed to making Uttarakhand a drug-free state,” Aggarwal said.
Further investigation is underway to track the international links of this network, including possible ties to Nigerian drug cartels. Champawat Police have urged citizens to report any suspicious activities via helpline numbers 100 or 112.
