Bhagalpur: Navgachhia in Bhagalpur district of Bihar has once again hit the headlines for illegal drug smuggling. Police say women are now becoming active suppliers of smack and brown sugar, bringing consignments worth crores of rupees from Manipur and West Bengal to Bihar. Locals are deeply worried about the rising number of young people getting addicted to these drugs.
In the latest case, Navgachhia police arrested a woman smuggler named Julie alias Mahi, a resident of Malda in West Bengal. She was caught carrying 750 grams of brown sugar hidden in a dairy milk celebration packet. Police said the consignment was worth nearly Rs 1 crore and was meant to be delivered to Gunjan Kumar, a resident of Sahu Tola Bhawanipur. Julie told investigators that she had already delivered such consignments three times in the last two months and was paid large amounts each time.
Last month too, two women from Manipur were arrested with more than 2 kilograms of brown sugar worth over Rs 3 crore. They had travelled by the Avadh Assam train and were on their way to Navgachhia when police, acting on secret information, stopped their vehicle and seized the drugs. Officers said both women admitted that they smuggled brown sugar regularly for high payments.
Police records show that Navgachhia has been used as a storage and distribution point for smack and brown sugar for the past several years. In December 2024, a major case was uncovered when Purnia police caught smugglers with 5 kilograms of smack. They revealed that raw materials were coming from Manipur and being processed in Bengal before reaching Bihar. Police estimate that these gangs earn crores every month and recruit youth who are desperate for money to transport the drugs.
Officials say the growing involvement of women in this illegal trade is a serious concern. They also warn that the easy availability of brown sugar and smack is putting an entire generation of young people at risk, especially in Kosi-Seemanchal and neighbouring areas. The crackdown continues, but the scale of the trade shows how deeply rooted the problem has become.
