NCB busts clandestine drug manufacturing lab in Mysuru

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) said it busted a major inter-State drug trafficking syndicate and clandestine drug manufacturing laboratory in Mysuru.

The NCB’s statement, made on January 30, comes amid denials by the Mysuru City Police and Home Minister G. Parameshwara that the search operations carried out at a phenyl manufacturing unit in Hebbal industrial area in Mysuru did not yield any contraband or materials used in the manufacture of narcotic drugs.

However, the NCB said the search on the premises in Mysuru had revealed a “full-fledged clandestine laboratory with sophisticated instruments for manufacture of drugs”.

The NCB has linked the laboratory to the recovery of 35 kg of Mephedrone (MD) from an SUV bearing a Karnataka registration number. The vehicle was intercepted at Palsana in Gujarat’s Surat district on January 28 by its sleuths. The lab has also been linked to the seizure of 1.8 kg of opium, cash amounting to ₹25.6 lakh, and various chemicals from the house of Mahindra Kumar Vishnoi, the alleged mastermind of the drug network, in Dastan Residency, Palsana.

Three persons, including Vishnoi, who were transporting the MD for further distribution in Rajasthan, have been arrested. The NCB said investigations revealed that Vishnoi, who was earlier involved in peddling opium and smack, had conceived the idea of manufacturing synthetic drugs after talking to other inmates while lodged in jail in connection with a Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act case.

“During his incarceration, he familiarised himself with the processes, market demand, and supply chains of synthetic narcotics, which he later operationalised after coming out of jail on bail by setting up a clandestine manufacturing unit at Mysuru,” the NCB statement said.

“This unit, which was being operated under the guise of manufacturing chemicals for cleaning purposes, was taken on rent by a co-accused and relative of the mastermind, who has also been arrested,” the statement added.

Drugs valued at about ₹10 crore in the street market, along with the cash worth ₹25.6 lakh, the SUV, and various chemicals weighing more than 500 kg have been seized in the case so far. 

The unit housing the clandestine lab has been sealed for examination by the forensic team. All four accused arrested so far in the case belong to the Jalore district, Rajasthan, the statement said.

The investigation has also revealed that the accused, Vishnoi, is a habitual offender, against whom three cases had been registered in Rajasthan and one case in Gujarat. The clandestine lab was reportedly established in 2024, and the accused has since successfully manufactured and distributed multiple consignments, according to NCB.

Further investigation is under way to identify other members of the drug cartel and to identify the supply chain of laboratory equipment and chemicals used in the facility.

Considering the increasing use of MD in India, NCB has circulated Red Flag Indicators about the presence of clandestine labs to various States for sensitisation of field-level officers.

The NCB, in its statement, revealed that it has also identified two key chemicals, namely 2-Bromo-4-methylpropiophenone and Monomethylamine (MMA), which are used in the manufacture of MD, and urged chemical industries engaged in the manufacture and trade of these chemicals to verify the credentials of purchasers, so that these chemicals are not diverted for illicit purposes of manufacturing MD.