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Thursday, December 18, 2025
TopicOpium

Topic: Opium

Afghanistan is starving—and its farmers are fighting to save the poppy

The world has a shared interest in helping Afghan farmers move on from poppy. But time and again, it has abandoned them and the young Afghans killed by the poisonous harvest to their fate.

Is ‘Ice’ becoming the new ‘chitta’? Hit hard by Taliban’s opium ban, Punjab is breaking bad

Recoveries indicate shift in smuggling of narcotics from India-Pakistan border into state, with smugglers veering more towards pushing 'Ice' or crystal meth than heroin or ‘chitta’.

Punjab Police bust interstate opium smuggling syndicate operating from Jharkhand, 2 arrested

Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said they have seized 66 kg drugs and further investigations are going on to establish linkages in this case.

Indian opium paid for Chinese tea. It pushed wealthy Asia into poverty

In 'Asia after Europe', Sugata Bose explores developments in Asian thought, art, and politics that challenged EuroAmerican dominance.

Afghanistan’s opium cultivation grew by 32% after Taliban takeover last year, finds UN report

The report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime also found that farmers' income from opium sales have tripled to $1.4 billion in 2022, from $425 million in 2021.

Bajaj Healthcare is first private entity to enter highly-regulated opium processing sector 

Although India is one of the few countries that permit opium cultivation, its processing has so far been highly centralised.

Empire of poppies: Why countries think stopping Taliban’s narco-state is not worth the cost

Even as ordinary Afghans are reported to be selling their organs — and their daughters — for food, the Taliban-led opium industry is blossoming.

Opium production in Afghanistan crosses 6,000-ton mark for 5th year, says UN report

Uncertainty after Taliban takeover of Afghanistan pushed up opium prices in August & September 2021. But output is up by 8% and incentives for cultivation have risen, report adds.

Mephedrone & opium worth over Rs 20 lakh seized in two operations in Surat, 4 arrested

3 accused in the first operation are history-sheeters. They had brought mephedrone from Mumbai. The 4th accused in second case ​was smuggling opium from Rajasthan.

Desperate Afghans have found a ‘new treatment’ for coronavirus – opium

Covid-19 is spreading rapidly in Afghanistan, and with no vaccine and scant medical resources people are turning to older remedies in the hopes of beating the pandemic.

On Camera

What the key political events of 2025 tell us about Narendra Modi and India’s future

From Operation Sindoor to India-US tensions to the EC controversies, a clear understanding has emerged about where the politics is headed now.

Steady growth rooted in ‘Dravidian model’. How Tamil Nadu more than doubled its GSDP in 10 yrs

RBI Handbook of Statistics shows state’s GSDP has more than doubled in past decade, finishing second behind Maharashtra. It has performed well across health & education parameters as well.

Israel has ‘realised who its real friend is’, eyes defence expansion in India amid arms curbs by others

It is argued that India-Israel ties are moving from buyer–seller dynamic to one focused on joint development & manufacturing partnership, a shift 'more durable' than traditional arms sales.

India’s top airline just handed sarkar the keys. That’s IndiGo’s real ‘crime’

Don’t blame misfortune. This is colossal incompetence and insensitivity. So bad, heads would have rolled even in the old PSU-era Indian Airlines and Air India.