There is big money in narcotics, but it is not limited to just the couriers, peddlers and their cartel any more. In its ongoing war on drugs, the Narcotics Control Bureau has hiked its reward structure for informers substantially to make it more lucrative to inform the sleuths than even carrying the contraband for the drug mafia.

Fact File

Chennai:

Under the revised reward scheme, an informer stands to gain Rs 600 for each kilogramme of ganja seized based on her/his tip off, while it is a steep Rs 2.4 lakh for a kilogramme of cocaine. This used to be just Rs 80 and Rs 40,000 respectively till now, before the revision that came after 16 years. 

The reward for the common drugs from opium to brown sugar has also been increased anywhere from 2.5 times to as much as 27 times depending on the drug. 

Bigger the seizure, the larger the reward, noted an NCB officer in Chennai. This multifold increase in reward kitty is expected to encourage more from the public to alert the agency, believed senior officers of the bureau. Moreover, by stepping up the money on offer, the agency has essentially given a motivation to even the couriers to turn into whistle-blowers. 

For instance, a person carrying cocaine for the drug cartels would be paid about Rs 1.6 lakh (USD 2,500) for a five-kg package of cocaine. But if the courier informs the bureau, he would stand to make as much as Rs 12 lakh for the same quantity. The quantum of reward will depend on several factors, noted the latest NCB circular that announced the hike in reward. 

“The accuracy of the information, degree and risk involved, extent and nature of help rendered by the informer and whether the information also gave clues of the persons involved in the drug trafficking cartel,” the circular said. 

The reward for officials from NCB and other government department comes with more riders wherein the reward depends on the purity of the contraband. According to A Bruno, NCB director, Chennai, the informer can claim 100 per cent of the reward amount if the seized drug is 100 per cent pure. “If it is only 50 per cent pure, he will get only 50 per cent of the amount,” he said. 

The NCB has also brought in new substances into the narcotics reward list including amphetamine (reward of Rs 20,000 / kg), methamphetamine (Rs 20,000), Ecstasy (Rs 15,000 per seizure of 1,000 tablets), LSD (Rs 30 / blot) and also destruction of opium and ganja crop (Rs 10,000 / per hectare). So if you have any info on narcotics, call 044-26820694 to claim your reward!