NEW DELHI: A seemingly innocuous cactus, thriving in the arid expanse of the desert, appears to have surreptitiously infiltrated the capital’s party circuit, perhaps because of its mind-altering capabilities. Mescaline, a drug hitherto unknown to Delhi, has rung alarm bells as law enforcement officials seized the first ever consignment in the city.
While the sudden discovery has left seasoned law enforcement officers perplexed, a bigger operation has begun to unearth the larger module involved in mescaline trafficking. The drug, sources said, never gained much popularity in India and remained limited to underground party scenes due to various factors, a reason why seizure of this contraband has been scarce.
“In the early 2000s, psychedelic trance band 1200 Micrograms came up with a track called Mescaline. The psychoactive substance was a rage in the US and Mexico at the time. Mexico was the sole producer of the contraband as it came from button-shaped seeds of the peyote cactus found in the country,” explained a source.
“The drug became hugely popular for a brief period but died out soon because of several reasons, including lack of supply and some Russian groups overpowering the market with the supply of LSD which had similar effects,” the source added.
Over two decades later, mescaline appears to have become the latest rage in the world of underground parties. The latest operation by Narcotics Control Bureau and special cell, conducted on a tip-off from an informer in Mehrauli, led to the seizure of 3.8kg of mescaline worth Rs 15-20 crore in the international market. It was recovered from a woman named Faith Rachael belonging to Lagos, Nigeria.
Investigators said the contraband was being smuggled in packaging for toffees and fish food. “The arrest was made after months of diligent investigation and surveillance. Close coordination between the special cell and NCB has been instrumental in the operation’s success,” said an investigator.
Investigation revealed manufacturing of the drug originated from clandestine laboratories operated by the drug cartel outside India. That is not surprising as mescaline comes from button-shaped seeds found in the peyote cactus in Mexico. It is also derived from other members of the Cactaceae plant family and Fabaceae bean family found in the region. Most labs engaged in making mescaline are believed to be in Mexico.
The drug is hugely popular in European countries and the US as it is branded as a substance intended to improve mental health. This Jan, Spanish police raided a den in Madrid and arrested 18 traffickers engaged in the supply of mescaline and another drug called Ayahuasca. The operation was being run as a business network promoting neo-shamanic rituals online promising “improvement in physical and mental health through consumption of psychoactive substances”. The suspects also organised “inner evolution retreats” where they supplied these substances, along with poisonous secretions of kambo frogs, popularly known as road venom.
“Early use of mescaline dates back to over a hundred years. It was part of the religious ceremonies of Native Americans for hundreds of years and remains so today,” said a source. In 1954, Aldous Huxley wrote a book called “The Doors of Perception” detailing his psychedelic experience under the influence of mescaline in the summer of 1953.
There are very few instances of mescaline-related police raids or incidents. In India, a minuscule quantity was seized in Pune two years ago and in Punjab in 2013.
