Telangana
The passenger intended to export the drug illegally, a Customs officer said today. Based on intelligence inputs, the Air Intelligence Unit of the Customs yesterday seized the drug from the passenger who had concealed it in small tin cans in the guise of turmeric powder and 'kumkum' (red powder used by women for applying on the forehead) in the checked-in luggage, he said.
Ketamine is classified as a psychotropic substance under the NDPS Acct, the officer said.The passenger is being questioned in connection with the seizure, he added.
A few days ago, the Delhi High Court had refused to remove Ketamine, used as an anaesthetic in veterinary medicine and also known as a party and date rape drug, from the list of psychotropic substances.
A bench of Chief Justice G Rohini (since retired) and Justice Jayant Nath upheld the inclusion of Ketamine in the list of regulated drugs on the ground that it was being abused in South-East Asian countries and there were also complaints about its trafficking in India.