Mumbai, May 28: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has launched a significant operation against an organized drug trafficking network, resulting in the arrest of drug trafficker Rahul Balakrishna Shedge. He was apprehended on May 27 and subsequently transferred to the Taloja Central Jail in Navi Mumbai.
According to the NCB, this operation was conducted under a detention order issued by the Joint Secretary of the Government of India’s PIT-NDPS Division on May 14, 2026. Officials revealed that Rahul Balakrishna Shedge has been involved in drug trafficking and the illegal production of narcotics for an extended period. He has been arrested four times by various agencies, including the NCB and the DRI.
Investigative agencies indicate that Rahul possesses a strong knowledge of chemistry. He entered the drug trafficking world in 2009 when the DRI in Mumbai arrested him in connection with drugs such as Alprazolam, Nordazepam, Amphetamine, and Diazepam.
Despite receiving bail, he continued his illegal operations. In 2012, the NCB in Mumbai arrested him in a major ketamine trafficking case that spanned multiple cities.
In 2018, the DRI in Mumbai arrested him again for attempting to manufacture illegal drugs. Nevertheless, he remained connected to the drug network.
The NCB reported that in 2025, Rahul Balakrishna Shedge was arrested for the illegal production of a chemical that was just one step away from the process of making ketamine. He had established a chemical lab in Raigad district, where he was preparing a chemical compound that was only one step below the final drug product. Agencies believe he adopted this method to evade the direct scope of the NDPS Act, 1985.
Given his ongoing criminal activities, the NCB has registered a case and taken him into custody. The bureau stated that this operation is part of a broader campaign against organized drug syndicates and habitual offenders. The NCB reiterated its commitment to achieving a ‘drug-free India by 2047.’
The NCB has urged the public to share any information related to drugs by calling the National Narcotics Helpline at the toll-free number 1933. The bureau assured that the identities of informants would be kept completely confidential.
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