Manipur Poppy fields destroyed amid cross-border drug threat

Security forces destroyed around 53 acres of illicit poppy cultivation in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district, police said on Thursday, in a continued crackdown on narcotics networks operating in the sensitive border state.

The operation was carried out on Wednesday. According to an official statement, combined teams of the Manipur Police, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) , Forest Department and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) destroyed poppy plantations spread across the hill ranges of Moljol, Tusam, Vaichei-Naphai and surrounding areas.

Several makeshift huts, bags of fertilisers and herbicides, and equipment used for illegal cultivation were recovered from the sites, the statement said.

Security officials said the destruction of poppy fields is a critical step in tackling the cross-border drug trade that operates along India’s porous eastern frontier. In Manipur and other northeastern states, illicit poppy cultivation is often linked to transnational drug syndicates with roots across the Myanmar border, making narcotics trafficking not just a criminal issue but a serious national security concern.

Authorities have repeatedly warned that the cross-border drug trade weakens India’s sovereignty by eroding the state’s control over border regions. Drug networks exploit difficult terrain and international boundaries to run parallel illegal economies that operate outside government oversight, challenging law enforcement and governance.

The profits generated from narcotics trafficking are also believed to fuel organised crime and insurgent activities, directly threatening internal security and territorial integrity. Officials say this narco-economy damages local communities by encouraging corruption, intimidating residents and blocking legitimate development, further weakening the state’s presence in affected areas.

Security agencies have stressed that combating poppy cultivation and drug trafficking is essential to safeguarding India’s sovereignty, as unchecked cross-border narcotics networks can destabilise border states and undermine the authority of the Indian state.