Chem, pharma firms under scanner after MD seizure

Vadodara: A day after the anti-terrorism squad (ATS) seized drugs worth Rs 1,100 crore from a Savli firm, the Vadodara rural police formed a special team that will start scanning chemical and pharmaceutical firms that are operating in the district areas for suspicious activities.
“Our special operations group (SOG) team is in the process of collecting data of all the pharma and chemical units registered in our region.Soon, we will start scanning each and every suspicious firm and visit their premises too,” said Rohan Anand, Vadodara SP (rural).
Police will carefully check the raw material that the firms get and their output to ascertain if there are any anomalies.
“The focus is also on the chemical and pharma units that have been abandoned or the ones that are in the early stage of production. Background of the owners will also be checked along with those dealing with the firms,” Anand added.
A similar racket was busted in the rural area some years ago. The cops are now trying to track down the accused and find out if they have become active again. Also under the radar are the warehouses located in the remote areas and abandoned premises of companies set up years ago.
Three days ago, the ATS raided the premises of Nectar Chem located in Savli and found 225 kg mephedrone. Owners of the firm Mahesh Dhoraji and Piyush Patel were arrested from the spot and they revealed the names of seven others involved in the drug racket.
The drug consignment was brought from a manufacturing unit near Ankleshwar and stored in the firm’s warehouse.