The Gujarat ATS has successfully dismantled a massive mephedrone (MD) manufacturing operation in Bhopal, arresting Amit Chaturvedi (57) from Bhopal and Sanyal Bane (40) from Nashik. The duo was running the operation under the guise of a legitimate manufacturing unit at the Bagroda Industrial Estate.
In a coordinated raid, the Gujarat ATS, along with the NCB, seized a staggering 907.09 kg of MD (both in solid and liquid forms), with an estimated market value of Rs1,814.18 crore. Alongside the drug seizure, authorities also confiscated around 5,000 kg of raw materials and critical production equipment, including grinders, motors, glass flasks, and heaters.
Sanyal Bane revealed during interrogation that he had previously been arrested in 2017 in connection with an MD seizure at Mumbai’s Amboli Police Station, where he served a five-year prison sentence. After his release, he partnered with Amit Chaturvedi to restart the illegal drug production business, setting up the factory in the industrial estate about six to seven months ago. For the last three to four months, they had been secretly producing MD by using chemical processes, which was then sold illegally.
The factory, spread across a 22,500 sq ft shed, is reported to be the largest illegal MD production facility ever uncovered by the Gujarat ATS. Authorities estimate it had the capacity to produce up to 25 kg of MD per day.
A thorough investigation is underway to uncover the wider network of this drug cartel and any other links to illegal activities.
