'Smugglers used Starlink for navigation'

The Andaman and Nicobar Police on Thursday recovered sophisticated satellite communication equipment and saved navigation coordinates from a Myanmarese vessel caught earlier this week with what officials called the largestever drug haul in the region approximately 6,000kg of methamphetamine worth over ₹36,000 crore.

- Sanjeev K

The boat, intercepted in a joint operation by the Crime and Economic Offence Police Station (C&EO) and the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Monday, had Starlink equipment and GPS waypoints saved for Rangat and Neil island. Starlink, operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX, provides high-speed satellite internet access even in remote maritime locations, making it potentially valuable for coordinating illegal operations far from conventional communication networks.

Director general of police HGS Dhaiwal said police traced the location of the main accused, Zay Yar Soe, to Tachileik near the borders of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand - a region notorious as the golden triangle of drugs. "We recovered his boarding passes of September 28 and October 7, when he travelled from Yangoon to Tachileik," he said.

The investigation has revealed an intricately planned operation spanning multiple countries.