New Delhi, Apr 26: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Sunday announced the launch of a coordinated operation — ‘WIPE’ — aimed at preventing the misuse of online platforms for illegal sale and distribution of pharmaceutical drugs that are regulated under the law.
The federal anti-narcotics agency said in a statement that it has issued formal notices to certain online platforms, under the Web-based Illicit Activities Prevention and Enforcement (WIPE), directing them to take “immediate” action so that their services are not misused.
“A comprehensive list of NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act) regulated substances has been shared to enable proactive identification and removal of such listings,” the NCB said in a statement.
It added that online platforms like India MART, Tradeindia and Dial4Trade have taken certain measures, including the removal of flagged products and suspension of suspicious vendors.
The agency said it has identified 122 instances involving 62 substances that include “commonly abused” drugs like Clonazepam, Diazepam and Fentanyl.
Out of these, 58 substances fall under the purview of the NDPS Act while four are classified as “controlled” substances and can be transacted only after the approval of the NCB.
“NCB’s technical teams are continuing to monitor the surface web using advance tools and international intelligence inputs to identify emerging threats and ensure timely intervention,” the agency said.
The agency is taking support of the International Narcotics Control Board’s (INCB) intelligence platform acronymed SNOOP (Scanning Novel Opioids on Online Platforms) programme for running ‘Op WIPE’.
It said WIPE marks a “strategic” shift from reactive enforcement where illegal listings are detected and removed before they translate into actual trafficking. This approach strengthens India’s ability to combat drug networks operating in both physical and digital domains, the NCB said.
The agency said the latest initiative builds upon the success of ‘Operation MED-MAX’ that was undertaken by the NCB along with the US DEA, Australian Federal Police (AFP) and some other foreign agencies to dismantle a “highly sophisticated” transnational drug trafficking syndicate in July 2025.
That operation was based on the inputs jointly developed by the US DEA and NCB and originated from the seizure of 3.7 kg of Tramadol tablets in India.
“Payments were routed through cryptocurrencies, PayPal (payment gateway) and other remittance channels while international re-shippers were used for last-mile delivery,” the NCB said.(PTI)
