Aizawl, Mar 2 (PTI) The Mizoram government will scale up its operations against smuggling of areca nuts from Myanmar, Home Minister K Sapdanga informed the Assembly on Monday.

The home minister noted that illegal influx of the commodity from the neighbouring country over the past few years has caused severe economic damage to local cultivators and the rise of unregulated "black money" in the region.

According to official data spanning from 2019 to 2025, the authorities have registered a total of 468 cases related to the smuggling of areca nuts from Myanmar, and the enforcement drive has led to the arrest of 292 people during the six years, he said.

Of the total cases registered, 109 were filed as violations of prohibitory orders under the IPC or the newly implemented Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), while the remaining 359 cases, which formed the bulk, were registered under the Customs Act, Sapdanga said.

The minister said that 184 people were arrested for offences under the IPC or BNSS, and 108 others were booked under the Customs Act.

Sapdanga said that offenders arrested under the IPC/BNSS for defying promulgation orders face trial before a judicial magistrate, with penalties ranging from fines to imprisonment as prescribed by the respective codes.

Those caught specifically under the Customs Act, 1962, are prosecuted under the stringent provisions of the law, he said.

According to the Home Minister, the areca nuts entering from Myanmar bypassed mandatory import duties or taxes, which constituted a violation of the Customs Act.

"As these goods are untaxed, they are sold at very low prices. This not only increases the circulation of illegal money but also severely affects local areca nut growers in selling their own produce," Sapdanga said.

The home minister reaffirmed the government's "zero-tolerance" policy, stating that it intends to continue the ban and strengthen border surveillance.

Earlier this month, the Home Minister had said that any person, including government officials, involved in the illegal trade will not be spared.

He had alleged that some politicians and policemen had been previously involved in the illegal trade.

Sapdanga had also claimed that the ongoing crackdown on areca nut smuggling from Myanmar has significantly boosted prices of locally produced areca nuts. PTI CORR NN

Customs enforcement against areca nut smuggling intensified, emphasising prosecution under prohibitory orders and strengthened border surveillance. Intensified enforcement targets areca nut smuggling from Myanmar due to evasion of import duties and market harm to local growers. Authorities have registered numerous cases and made arrests under prohibitory-order offences prosecuted via the Indian Penal Code and the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and separate prosecutions under the Customs Act. The government affirms continued prohibition, enhanced border surveillance, and a zero-tolerance stance including probes into alleged official complicity.