Bhubaneswar, Sept. 14: Narcotics Control Bureau today seized 2,100 bottles of cough syrup from Station Bazar and detained three persons.

The bureau suspects a gang to be operating in the state and the codeine-based syrup was being smuggled to Bengal, Bihar and Bangladesh.

'We have information of the banned cough syrup being smuggled from Delhi by train and we have been working on it for the past few weeks. We conducted a surprise raid and seized 2,100 bottles. We are interrogating them further to find out about other members of the gang,' said SP (Narcotics Control Bureau, Intelligence Cell), Bhubaneswar, Vikash Kumar.

Officials said that each bottle of the syrup with the MRP of Rs 127 was being sold at high prices in Bengal, Bihar and Bangladesh because it is primarily used there as an intoxicant.

'Each bottle of syrup fetches around Rs 250 in Bengal but the price goes up to Rs 450 when it reaches Bangladesh. The syrup has also in high demand in Bihar after the Nitish Kumar government enforced a blanket ban on the sale of liquor,' said an official.

Doctors said that the cough syrup is used for medicinal purpose for treatment of cold, cough and bronchitis with a prescribed dose of 5-10ml as directed by the physician.

'The syrup contains codeine phosphate, a derivative of morphine and addicts use the syrup to get high. The addicts are using the syrup as a cheap option for intoxication. Though the cough syrup is supposed to be sold only with a valid prescription, medicine shop owners are selling the syrup just like that because it is profitable,' said Arbind Chinara, a city-based doctor.<>An official of the Narcotics Control Bureau said the syrup was being smuggled into the state by train.

'The seized consignment was supposed to come into the state from Bengal by bus. The racket is operating so clandestinely that the persons detained were unaware of the mastermind. We suspect today's seizure to have close links with a similar incident in Sambalpur,' said an official.

On August 29, Sambalpur police had seized 5,040 codeine-based cough syrup bottles while the contraband was being transported from Chhattisgarh to Bhubaneswar on a private bus. Police had arrested three persons, including two members of the bus staff, and another accused who was travelling in it as a passenger.