A woman, believed to be part of an inter-state drug racket, was arrested on Wednesday evening in central Calcutta. More than 20 grams of heroin were seized from her.

Nisha Parveen, 27, a resident of Mango, in Jamshedpur, was arrested in front of Victoria House in Esplanade following a tip-off.

She was waiting to hand over the consignment of heroin to a person from Berhampore when was rounded up.

“Twenty-three grams of heroin and Rs 9,500 were seized from her. A preliminary investigation revealed that she has part of a drug racket operating from West Bengal, Rajasthan and Orissa,” a detective department officer said on Thursday.

“We are trying to find out her links in Berhampore,” said Jawed Shamim, the deputy commissioner of police (detective department).

Parveen, a widow with two children, travelled frequently between Calcutta and Jamshedpur by train.

“She appeared to be a smart woman, fluent in English,” an officer said.

“So far, we know that the racket is active in West Bengal, Rajasthan and Orissa. But we have reason to believe that it has spread to other states, too. This woman is one of the top operators of the racket,” a senior officer said.

The current “market price” of heroin is Rs 1 lakh a kg, the officer added.