Rajasthan Police Exposes Major Rooftop Drug Manufacturing Operation in Jodhpur
In a significant crackdown, the Rajasthan Police's Anti Gangster Task Force (AGTF) on Friday dismantled a clandestine drug manufacturing unit operating from the rooftop of a house in Jodhpur. The operation led to the seizure of over 3 kilograms of MD drugs, valued at approximately Rs 3 crore in the international market, along with substantial quantities of hazardous chemicals. This bust has revealed a covert narcotics supply network that was distributing drugs across the region.
Arrest and Motivation Behind the Illegal Lab
Additional DGP Dinesh MN identified the primary accused as 40-year-old Ganpatram Beniwal. According to police reports, Beniwal allegedly converted his residential property into an illegal drug laboratory to repay a staggering debt of Rs 12 lakh. Acting on precise intelligence inputs, the AGTF arrested him from the scene, uncovering a sophisticated setup designed to scale up production to nearly 60 kilograms of MD.
Covert Raid and Seizure Details
Dinesh detailed that teams from the AGTF, Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), District Special Team (DST), and local police coordinated a strategic move under the cover of darkness. They surrounded the house, situated in a secluded area, before storming the rooftop. Officers discovered MD drugs spread out on a mattress, drying under electric bulbs, with drums filled with chemicals and heating equipment scattered across the site.
The police recovered 3.055 kilograms of finished MD drugs, alongside 55.725 kilograms of chemicals, including dichloromethane and other substances critical for drug synthesis. Additional equipment seized included electric stoves, buckets, steel utensils, and various drying materials, highlighting the operational scale of the lab.
Links to Smuggling Networks and Future Plans
Investigators revealed that Beniwal had struck a deal with smugglers based in Sanchore, identified as Asuram alias Lucky and Bhanu. In exchange for manufacturing drugs, these individuals agreed to clear his debt. The large volume of chemicals recovered indicates a planned expansion to produce at least 60 kilograms more of MD, which could have significantly flooded the local and regional markets with narcotics.
Police are now intensively tracking the supply chain and financial connections associated with this operation. A wider crackdown is anticipated on criminal networks operating across western Rajasthan, aiming to dismantle further illicit activities in the area.
