Maharashtra ANTF busts drug factories operating in Bengaluru.
Credit: Special Arrangement
Bengaluru: The exposure of three illegal synthetic drug manufacturing units operating within Bengaluru by the Maharashtra Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) has raised serious questions about how such high-value operations escaped the notice of local police patrolling.
Despite functioning for months in residential layouts under the limits of Bagalur, Kothanur and Avalahalli police station limits, the factories were traced not by Bengaluru police but by Maharashtra investigators pursuing a separate drug seizure case in Mumbai.
The racket came to light only after sustained interrogation of accused arrested outside Karnataka, eventually leading the ANTF to Bengaluru.
The Maharashtra police seized drugs worth Rs 55 crore, along with machinery and chemicals, from two manufacturing units and one storage facility - some of which were operating under the guise of event management and warehouse businesses. Investigators suspect the drugs were being supplied to multiple states.
The fact that such large-scale drug production units functioned in the city without detection has highlighted gaps in local intelligence gathering, routine surveillance of suspicious commercial establishments, and inter-state coordination.
Bengaluru police officials, however, said they would examine whether the accused had registered the units using forged documents or benami arrangements, making detection difficult. A senior officer said a joint probe would now be initiated to trace local facilitators and identify any lapses.
The case has once again underscored the growing challenge of synthetic drug networks using Bengaluru as a production base, while enforcement breakthroughs are increasingly coming from outside the state.
Factory 1: Located at Spandana Layout Colony in Bagaluru.
Factory 2: Located at N G Gollahalli in Kothanur.
Factory 3: Located at Yarappanahalli in Avalahalli.
Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said the recent drug seizure in Bengaluru was a collective operation carried out with the Maharashtra Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) and should not be seen as a failure of the state police.
Responding to claims that Maharashtra police carried out the raid on their own, the Home Minister said the action was taken with the cooperation of Karnataka police, based on specific inputs shared by their Maharashtra counterparts.
“I am not justifying that our police did not act. This was a collective operation. I am also not saying that our police failed,” he said.
He clarified that information about those involved in drug supply was provided by Maharashtra police, following which joint action was initiated. “We conducted the raid in coordination with Maharashtra police,” he added.
Stressing the government’s stand against narcotics, the Home Minister said the fight against drugs was a priority at all levels. At the same time, he warned that any negligence by jurisdictions police personnel would not be tolerated. "However, I have warned our officers that such incidents should not recur,” he said.
He added that action would be taken against anyone found guilty of dereliction of duty. “We have already initiated action. It will not stop at suspension alone. Strict action will be taken, including against officers concerned, up to the level of senior officials of the sub division," the Home Minister said.