3 days ago
Alprazolam racket busted in Telangana: two held in Pebbair
In a coordinated operation, the Wanaparthy Police and Regional Narcotics Control Cells (RNCCs) of Nizamabad and Mahabubnagar, under the Telangana Anti-Narcotics Bureau (TGANB), arrested two individuals for trafficking 500 grams of Alprazolam, a banned psychotropic drug.
The bust was made during a covert operation at the agriculture market yard in Pebbair, Wanaparthy where the accused were caught in the act. The accused have been identified as Bhaskar Goud, 42, of Thummalapalli village, and Ediga Narasimha Goud, 31, of Gadwal district. The duo was apprehended while attempting to transfer the narcotic substance, which is five times over the 'commercial quantity' threshold under the NDPS Act.
An officer from the Bureau said the main accused, Narasimha Goud, has been trafficking Alprazolam across Gadwal, Pebbair, and Kurnool for the past five years. 'He procured the substance from his contacts in Kurnool, including Ediga Gopal Goud, Ediga Jagadish Goud, and Harshawardhan Goud, at ₹2.8 lakh per kg and resold it for ₹4 lakh per kg. The consignment was reportedly being supplied to toddy shop operators,' said the officer.
The substance was recovered in transparent packets containing a yellowish powder, later confirmed to be Alprazolam by forensic analysis. The source, police say, includes a suspect named Ramakrishna from Anantapur, who remains at large.
Further investigations by TGANB has uncovered a larger network of clandestine pharmaceutical units manufacturing Alprazolam illegally across Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Maharashtra. The key accused, Amar Singh Deshmukh, a chemistry PhD, was operating labs supplying to both traffickers and toddy vendors.
The TGANB has urged citizens to remain vigilant and report any suspicious narcotic or toddy-related activity via the 1908 toll-free helpline or by email at tsnabho-hyd@ All tips will be treated confidentially, and credible informants will be rewarded.
