NCB busts Rs 1,745 cr cocaine syndicate, seizes 349 kg in Mumbai ‘Operation WHITE STRIKE’
Ravi Jakhu
Mumbai (Maharashtra), May 1, 2026: In a major breakthrough against organised drug trafficking, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has dismantled a transnational cocaine syndicate under “Operation WHITE STRIKE”, seizing around 349 kilograms of high-grade cocaine valued at approximately ₹1,745 crore in the illicit market from Mumbai and adjoining logistics hubs.
The operation, executed after more than six months of sustained intelligence gathering and surveillance, led to coordinated raids across the Kalamboli–Bhiwandi warehousing corridor in the Navi Mumbai–Thane region, exposing a sophisticated supply network using industrial storage facilities and concealed transport systems.
Acting on specific inputs, NCB teams first intercepted a Maruti Suzuki Super Carry vehicle near the KWC Warehousing Complex in Kalamboli, Navi Mumbai, recovering 136 packets of cocaine, each weighing about one kilogram. The drugs were hidden inside cartons along with cricket equipment, including pads and gloves. One accused was arrested on the spot.
Follow-up interrogation led investigators to a second concealed consignment stored in a warehouse at Bhiwandi’s Laxman Compound, near Rehnal Gaon, where 213 additional one-kg packets of cocaine were recovered, taking the total seizure to 349 kg.
Preliminary findings indicate that the narcotics were concealed inside a machinery cavity imported into India and packed in multiple protective layers, including polythene and a greasy coating, suggesting a highly organised concealment method. The use of Bhiwandi’s warehousing ecosystem points to a structured logistics chain involving import, storage, and distribution networks.
The NCB has launched a further investigation to trace the kingpin, financial handlers, and recipients of the consignment.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated the agency, stating that the crackdown reflects a “bottom-to-top approach” in dismantling narcotics networks and reaffirming the government’s resolve to crush drug cartels.
The operation, carried out under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been described by officials as a significant success in India’s ongoing zero-tolerance campaign against narcotics trafficking.