Jaipur, Nov 1 : The Barmer district police in Rajasthan have achieved a major success in the investigation of the illegal MD drug factory busted on July 22 in the Dholakia Kartiya area under the Sedwa police station.

Barmer Superintendent of Police Narendra Singh Meena said that the police have arrested the key supplier of chemical components, Rohan Prabhakar Gavans (44), a resident of Malad West, Mumbai.

SP Singh said that Gavans, owner of Rohan Chemicals Private Limited in Raigad, Maharashtra, had been allegedly supplying chemical ingredients such as chloroform, ammonium chloride, acid, and toluene to drug traffickers across states for several years.

He said that during the July 22 raid, police uncovered an illegal MD manufacturing unit in Dholakia Kartiya.

'The team seized 39.25 kg of MD ingredients, 290.84 kg of liquid chemicals, and 5.33 kg of white powder, sufficient to produce narcotics worth around Rs 100 crore,' he said.

SP Singh said that two accused - Mangilal, a resident of Dholakia Kartiya, and Birju Jayendra Shukla, a resident of Mumbai - were arrested on the spot.

'Further investigation revealed that Gavans had supplied the chemicals used in the factory,' he said.

SP Singh said that to apprehend him, a special team led by Chohatan Police Station Officer Rajuram Vishnoi was dispatched to Mumbai, where Gavans was arrested under a production warrant.

'The accused already faces four cases registered under the NDPS Act. Intensive interrogation is underway to trace the wider interstate and possibly international drug network,' he said.

SP Singh said that the NCB (Gujarat) and Maharashtra Police also raided Gavans' factory in Raigad district, seizing a large quantity of chemicals.

'In Rajasthan's Pratapgarh district, a joint operation by police and NCB led to the seizure of MD manufacturing equipment and additional chemical stock. So far, seven accused have been arrested in the Sedwa MD factory case, while several key suspects remain at large,' he said.

He said that those arrested include Rohan Gavans, Mangilal, Birju Shukla, Machhindra Tukaram Bhosale, Sushant Santosh Patil, Ganpat Singh, and Kamlesh alias Kartik.

'Ganpat Singh and Kamlesh each carried a Rs 25,000 reward. The remaining wanted suspects include Ramesh alias Anil Bishnoi (Rs 1 lakh reward) and others from Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Odisha,' said SP Singh.

/IANS