Sick pharmaceutical units under NCB scanner after drug haul

October 06, 2016 12:00 am | Updated November 01, 2016 11:13 pm IST - Bengaluru:

Wing Commander and scientist were arrested last week in the case

The arrest of an Indian Air Force Wing Commander in Maharashtra, a scientist in Hyderabad, and his wife based in Bengaluru, by the Narcotics Control Bureau over the last week for allegedly funding the manufacturing of amphetamine has thrown light on how small pharmaceutical factories are illegally being used to make the drug.

NCB officials seized 231 kg of amphetamine, a stimulant, and over Rs. 1 crore in cash.

One of the accused, Venkatarama Rao, is a scientist working in a chemical company in Bengaluru and has a house in Hebbagudi, Bengaluru. “Lured by easy money, he started making amphetamine in the lab of a loss-making pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Hyderabad. He used to travel frequently between the two cities,” said an NCB officer.

He would make the drug in Hyderabad and bring it to his house in Bengaluru in his car or tell his accomplice Ravishankar Rao to arrange the logistics. Venkatarama Rao and Ravishankar Rao were arrested in Hyderabad on September 30 when they were allegedly transporting the drug to Bengaluru. “Drug dealers used to come to his house in Hebbagudi or Hyderabad and take the consignment from there. He had customers from different parts of the country and other South Asian countries,” said an NCB officer.

During interrogation, the scientist revealed about a cash transaction that was about to take place in his Hebbagudi house on October 1. The officers went to Hebbagudi and intercepted a man who was carrying over Rs. 1 crore in a travel bag. “We believe that he is a subordinate of Wing Commander Rajasekhar Reddy. We have detained him for questioning,” the NCB officer said. The NCB also seized 31 g of the drug from the house and arrested Venkatarama Rao’s wife, Preethi.

“We believe that Rajasekhar Reddy is funding the manufacturing of drugs. The NCB sleuths arrested him in the Nanded police station limits when he was trying to flee to Goa a few days ago,” an NCB officer said.

The NCB officers said that Venkatarama Rao and Rajasekhara Reddy are both from Andhra Pradesh and were classmates. “They met again when Rajasekhar Reddy was posted at the Software Development Institute of the Air Force in Bengaluru,” said the officer.

Further investigation is on to check whether they were selling any other form of drugs in the city.

Bengaluru NCB officers said that they are keeping track on sick pharmaceutical units in Hyderabad and Karnataka. These drug manufacturing units are financially ailing and can sometimes be used to manufacture drugs illegally. “Most often the owners lease it out to some third party who, without the knowledge of the owner, use it to manufacture drugs. We are checking if the lab in Hyderabad had taken permission from the Drugs Control Department,” an officer said.

M. Devesh, chairman, Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Committee, Indian Drug Manufacturers Association, said that a manufacturing licence from the State Food and Drug Administration was needed to manufacture drugs and there was a provision for loan licence for other Companies under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act.

”For manufacture of any psychotropic substance, a company needs to register with the Central Bureau of Narcotics and file quarterly returns. If this is not being done, then it’s an illegal operation,” he added.

Probe on

231 kg of amphetamine, a stimulant, and over Rs. 1 crore in cash were seized

Venkatarama Rao, the scientist, used to make the drug in Hyderabad and bring it to his house in Bengaluru

Rajasekhar Reddy, the Wg. Cdr., is suspected to have been funding the manufacturing of drugs

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