Smuggling of illegal drug on rise

Different points of bordering district Joypurhat sees massive smuggling of illegal drug buprenorphine (also called suboxone), much to the worry of law enforcers and conscious citizens.

Police, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) in the district seized at least 16,500 ampoules of buprenorphine injection from different places of Joypurhat and arrested several people in this connection during the last nine months.

The drug used in treatment of opioid in a few countries, is a banned item in Bangladesh, said officials of law enforcement agencies.

But with its current availability, it is being abused mostly by cocaine takers, they said.

Flow of different intoxicants including cocaine, Phensidyl and ganja have gone down with the start of anti-narcotic drive across the country a couple of months ago, but the relatively new drug buprenorphine seem to be coming from India through different border areas as its small ampoules can be easily carried, said Rab and police official in the district.

Rab arrested Md Ashraful Alam with 495 ampoules of buprenorphine from Pashchim Rambhadrapur village under Phulbari upazila of Dinajpur on Monday.

The elite force arrested Tarazul Islam with 40 ampoules of buprenorphine from Bagzana village under bordering Panchbibi upazila of Joypurhat on August 4 this year.

Another Rab team arrested Rezaul Islam with 83 buprenorphine ampoules from Gopalpur village under Joypurhat on August 6.

On August 13, one Zia Uddin was arrested with 375 ampoules of buprenorphine.

In September, 649 ampoules of buprenorphine was seized from across the district.

Abul Khayer, commanding officer of Joypurhat Crime Prevention Camp of Rab, said most of the drug peddlers in the area have gone into hiding as they are active to prevent the spread of such illegal drugs.

The police are conducting drives in the district to nab the illegal drug traders, said Rashidul Hasan, superintendent of police of Joypurhat.

Members of BGB are also active in the border areas, said Rashed Mohammed Anisul Haque, commanding officer of Joypurhat BGB 20 Battalion.

Mahbubur Hossain, director of Udoy Rehabilitation Centre in Joypurhat, said around 20 percent of the patients coming for drug abuse treatment were takers of buprenorphine.

Dr Habibul Ahsan Talukdar, civil surgeon of Joypurhat, said takers of buprenorphine face the risk of heart and kidney diseases.

Buprenorphine is banned in Bangladesh as an A category drug under the Narcotics Control Act enacted in 1990, said Mohammad Shahidul Mannaf Kabir, former assistant director of the Department of Narcotics Control in Dinajpur (now posted in Panchagarh). 

“However, it is used for anti-drug treatment in a few countries. In some other countries, it is used as a medicine for animals,” he added.