India, Feb. 5 -- Law enforcement personnel and government agencies destroyed around 220 acres of illegal poppy cultivation and 30 farm huts in Manipur's Ukhrul district over the past 48 hours, officials said on Thursday. The operations were carried out at two locations where crops were at peak bloom and ripening stages.

The joint teams removed mature poppy plants using bush cutters, sprayed herbicides, and burned the fields to prevent latex extraction used in the production of heroin and other opiates. The Manipur government, in coordination with central forces, targeted plantations that were close to harvest in an effort to curb narcotics-related activities in the hill district.

On February 4, 2026, security forces destroyed about 180 ...