Indian state launches assault on drugs as U.N. warns of Bangladesh-like crisis


FILE PHOTO: Assam Police personnel burn seized drugs during a ceremony at a playground in Karbi Anglong district of the northeastern state of Assam, India, July 17, 2021. Picture taken July 17, 2021. REUTERS/Anuwar Hazarika

GUWAHATI, India (Reuters) - A northeastern Indian state that has for years been a big transit point for illicit drugs originating in neighbouring Myanmar has launched a massive crackdown on the trade, seizing record amounts and arresting nearly 2,000 people since May.

Assam, four of whose neighbouring states have open and rugged borders with Myanmar, connects the northeast to the rest of India. It has received praise for the drug clampdown from ruling and opposition politicians but been criticised for alleged human rights abuses, including the shooting of suspected traffickers.

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