Lalrindika Ralte, a congresswoman from Mizoram, claimed that areca nut smuggling from the neighbouring nation had swamped the state with the commodity, harming local growers' sales.

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Digital Desk: A Congress MLA wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting assistance in halting the smuggling of areca nuts from Myanmar, which has harmed Mizoram farmers.

Lalrindika Ralte, a congress MLA from Mizoram, claimed that areca nut smuggling from the neighbouring nation had swamped the state with the commodity, harming local growers' sales.

Although the Home Ministry has instructed the governments of Mizoram and Manipur to stop the extensive illegal import of areca nuts from Myanmar across the porous borders, according to Mr. Ralte, the Mizoram government has not taken significant action to combat this threat.

The Congress MLA wrote in the letter that "the Mizoram government's reaction to this hazardous scenario has been dismal and short of expectation from a state administration."

Local areca nut growers are dealing with the issue, and according to him, Assam law enforcement agents are unable to distinguish between areca nuts grown in Myanmar and those in Mizoram.

While Assam has been making every effort to prevent the entry of illegal areca nuts, he claimed that in Mizoram, law enforcement officers have frequently seized locally cultivated areca nuts since they are unable to tell the difference between unlawfully imported type and local ones.