NCB Busts Mumbai to Kolkata Network, Seizing 10 Lakh Worth of Heroin, Opioids in Operation WIPE
busts mumbai kolkata -
In a small, cluttered room tucked away in a Mumbai slum, 32-year-old Rukmini’s eyes welled up with tears as she clutched her youngest son tight, remembering the day he overdosed on a prescription painkiller he’d bought from an online seller who promised instant delivery.
The seller had turned out to be a middleman for a larger online drug trafficking ring.
Updated: April 27, 2026
In a small, cluttered room tucked away in a Mumbai slum, 32-year-old Rukmini’s eyes welled up with tears as she clutched her youngest son tight, remembering the day he overdosed on a prescription painkiller he’d bought from an online seller who promised instant delivery. The seller had turned out to be a middleman for a larger online drug trafficking ring.
Operation WIPE, launched by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), had been quietly working behind the scenes to dismantle this online network. Agents poured over digital platforms, monitoring encrypted messages, and tracking the digital footprints of suspected sellers and buyers. They were racing against time, as the network’s sophisticated algorithms and vast reach made it nearly impossible to pin down.
One chilly winter morning, NCB agents arrested seven individuals in various parts of the country, who were allegedly part of a massive online operation peddling everything from heroin to prescription opioids. The raids began at 6 am, with teams fanning out across major cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata. By the end of the day, authorities had seized over ₹10 lakh worth of illegal substances and closed down several darknet links.
As news of the raids spread, families like Rukmini’s began to exhale, hoping that this marked the beginning of the end for online drug traffickers who had left a trail of devastation in their wake. Rukmini’s son was lucky; he’d survived the overdose, but not all families are so fortunate. The impact of Operation WIPE will be felt across the country, but it’s the countless lives that have been saved – the kids who won’t have to face the horrors of addiction, the families who won’t have to say goodbye to a loved one – that are the real measure of its success.
As the country grapples with a growing substance abuse epidemic, Operation WIPE has shown that even the most elusive networks can be brought to justice with determined effort and technology. But the struggle is far from over. Experts warn that traffickers will adapt, change their tactics to evade law enforcement, and this is only the beginning of a much larger fight.
This high-profile operation shines a light on the devastating consequences of prescription medication addiction, highlighting the need for stricter online regulations to prevent such tragedies. Ultimately, Operation WIPE's success underscores the crucial role of collaboration between law enforcement and technology in combating the evolving and complex threat of online substance trafficking.
This is a developing story. More updates will follow as new information becomes available.
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