Over 2,650 kilograms of drugs to be burned in Thailand

Over 2,659 kilograms of narcotics from 1,166 cases, with a value of 5.97 billion baht (149.250 million US dollars) will be burned on June 25 at the Bang Pa-in Industrial Estate in Thailand's central province of Ayutthaya.

Public Health Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan said that the mass burning, which was organized by the Ministry of Public Health to mark the International Anti-narcotics Day on June 26, would represent the 31st such exercise in Thailand, the Thai News Agencyreported on Tuesday.

The vast proportion of the narcotics to be burned will be methamphetamines, while other drugs in the haul include 378 kilograms of heroin, 82 kilograms of opium, and smaller quantitiesof codeine, ecstasy, cocaine and cannabis.

Other organizations to take part in the event will include the Royal Thai Police, the Royal Thai Army and the Office of the Narcotics Control Board.

Last year, Thailand burned drug hauls on three separate occasions.

However, the burnings remain the tip of the iceberg in terms ofthe total quantities of drugs seized, and around 22.2 tonnes of drugs remain in the hands of the government waiting to be destroyed, the report said.

Source: Xinhua