The ISI-Taliban nexus could well result in Afghanistan remaining a world narco state

New Delhi, Sep 23: In the wake of a major drug bust in Gujarat, the Intelligence Agencies have warned that in the wake of the Taliban takeover, the narcotic smuggling into India could increase.

The warning comes in the wake of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence seizing 3,000 kilograms of heroin which had made its way into India from Afghanistan. The heroin that was seized was valued at Rs 20,000 crore. The shipment from Afghanistan was mixed with talc stone powder and packed in two containers.

Investigations found that the shipment from Afghanistan made its way into the Gujarat port through Iran's Bandar Abbas Port. The confusion about the final destination of the contraband was caused because it was registered with a GST number of a company in Vijayawada, which has its offie on Gadiyarmvari Street at Satyanarayanapuram.

Commissioner of Police, Vijayawada, B Sreenivasulu said that the registration was taken by. Govindaraju Durga Purna Vaishali a resident of Chennai. He had taken the GST registration in August 2020 on the address D No 23-14-16, Satyanarayanapuram.

"When our officers detained the consignment and examined it, suspected narcotic drugs were recovered from the containers and the presence of heroin was confirmed," a statement by the DRI read.

According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes, Afghanistan is the largest producer of opium and accounts for 80 per cent of the world's supply. More than a third of the global quantity of cannabis resin seized was intercepted in Western and Central Europe (34 per cent) in 2019, followed by the Near and Middle East/South-West Asia (33 per cent) and North Africa (30 per cent). These subregions accounted for close to 97 per cent of all cannabis resin seized worldwide in 2019. The largest quantities of cannabis resin were seized by Spain, followed by Morocco, Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran, the report (https://www.unodc.org/res/wdr2021/field/WDR21_Booklet_3.pdf) also said.

Afghanistan appears to be the second most important source country of cannabis resin worldwide, accounting for 18 per cent of all mentions of the main "country of origin" in responses to the annual report questionnaire in the period 2015-2019. The two other most frequently mentioned countries of origin of cannabis resin seized were Pakistan and Lebanon. Those three countries have been reported as source or transit countries of canna- bis resin intercepted in other countries in the Near and Middle East/South-West Asia, most notably countries of the Arabian peninsula. Cannabis resin originating in Afghanistan has also been identified by countries in Cen- tral Asia, Eastern Europe and, to a lesser extent, Western and Central Europe.

The Islamic Republic of Iran reported that the cannabis resin seized on its territory in the period 2015-2019 originated mainly in Afghanistan and was trafficked either via Pakistan or directly from Afghanistan. In 2018, roughly 65 per cent of the cannabis resin seized in the Islamic Republic of Iran was destined for countries of the Arabian peninsula, 15 per cent for the Caucasus and 20 per cent for domestic consumption; in 2019, however, most cannabis resin seized in the Islamic Republic of Iran was destined for the country's domestic market, the Caucasus coun- tries, Turkey and, to a lesser extent, the European Union, the report added.

The Taliban which claims is the guardian of Islam has not banned opium despite it being considered as haram. The Taliban derives 60 per cent of its income from narcotics trade. The UN officials have said that the Taliban had earned at least 400 million USF between 2018 and 2019 from the drug trade
The Taliban has said after the August 15 takeover that it would not allow drug trade. Intelligence Bureau officials tell OneIndia that this is unlikely to happen.

The ISI which backs the Taliban thrives on the produce from Afghanistan. Dawood Ibrahim is being allowed to undertake the narcotics trade between Afghanistan-Pakistan and India on the condition that he pays 40 per cent of the proceeds to the ISI in exchange for protection. Keeping these factors in mind, it is unlikely that the Taliban would act against drug trade, the official cited above explained.