MOHAMMAD JAMIL KHAN

Seizures of yaba and other amphetamine-type stimulant tablets rose by 90.58 percent in 2025 compared with the previous year.

The picture emerged in the DNC’s Annual Drug Report Bangladesh 2025, which shows law enforcement agencies seized 43,562,811 ATS tablets in 2025, up from 22,857,751 in 2024.

ATS, or amphetamine-type stimulants, are synthetic stimulant drugs that include MDMA and methamphetamine-based yaba, officials said.

In 2023, the seizure stood at 42,977,219 tablets.

Meanwhile, cannabis seizures fell from 114,345.2kg in 2024 to 96,357.58kg in 2025. Heroin seizures dropped from 502.686kg to around 336.696kg. Phensedyl seizures fell from 5,72,865 bottles to 3,19,940 bottles, while buprenorphine seizures declined from 1,57,977 to 1,34,468 ampoules.

Cocaine seizures also dropped sharply, from 130.184kg in 2024 to 14.651kg in 2025.

Mohammad Badruddin, additional director (intelligence) at DNC headquarters, said the rise in seizures was linked to an increase in the supply of and demand for yaba.

Md Hasan Maruf, director general of DNC, said supply had increased as Myanmar rebel groups were using yaba as a “narco-currency”.

“With limited access to conduct operations inside Myanmar territory, we conduct drives whenever we receive information about smuggling,” he said.

Amid the situation, the government has taken steps to strengthen the DNC’s operational capacity.

Speaking at a discussion in Dhaka on Friday, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said an amendment to the Narcotics Control Act would be placed in parliament within the next couple of days.

Under the proposed amendment, DNC officials would get modern weapons and updated training to fight armed drug dealers and smugglers using modern technology, he said.

Towhidul Haque, associate professor at Dhaka University’s Institute of Social Welfare and Research, however, said the drives and initiatives had failed The It said

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