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    Op-Ed                                                                    JUNE 19, 2026     |  The Indian Eye 14

              Dismantling the Fentanyl

                                            Supply Chain

                         As synthetic drug networks evolve, U.S. agencies are focusing on precursor

              chemicals, logistics systems, and international coordination to disrupt fentanyl trafficking.

            CHARVI ARORA
            SPAN Magazine, U.S. Embassy New Delhi

                 or decades, counternarcotics
                 efforts largely followed familiar
            Fpatterns.  Authorities  tracked
            crops, monitored trafficking corridors,
            intercepted shipments, and targeted
            cartels moving drugs across borders.
            Fentanyl has changed that model.
                Unlike plant-based narcotics
            such  as  heroin  or  cocaine,  fentanyl
            is a synthetic drug that relies heavily
            on dualuse chemical precursors that
            also serve legitimate pharmaceutical
            and industrial markets.

            This shift has fueled a national
            crisis; synthetic opioids, pri-

            marily fentanyl, account for 60
            percent of all overdose deaths
            in the United States, claiming
            approximately 48,000 lives

            annually. Tiny quantities can
            be extraordinarily lethal; just                    A CBP forensic scientist at the Memphis forward operating lab analyzes an unknown substance
            two milligrams can  consti-        that was concealed inside a parcel selected for examination by a CBP officer, demonstrating how teams work together to counter concealment
            tute a deadly dose, according                               methods like mislabeled small parcelss (CBP photo by Jerry Glaser)

            to a U.S. Customs and Border
                                                   This has significantly increased   tematically identifying and disman-  mislabeled  small  parcels,”  says  the
            Protection (CBP) official at U.S.  the volume of actionable  informa-  tling the organizations and enablers   CBP official.
            Embassy New Delhi.                tion, investigative leads, and poten-  behind them,” the HSI official says.   CBP  employs  comprehen-
                                              tial targets, necessitating the integra-  This systemic approach is sup-  sive strategies and advanced tools
                                              tion of border, financial, cyber, and   ported  by “Detect  and  Defeat”  leg-  to  identify  high-risk shipments.
             THE INVISIBLE SUPPLY CHAIN       international tools into a coordinat-  islative proposals aimed at expand-  The agency  utilizes  a sophisticated,
                                              ed approach.                      ing authorities’ ability to collect and   multi-faceted system that integrates
               “We are confronting a commodity    That reality has reshaped how   share data across the supply chain.    intelligence  gathering, advanced
            that can be manufactured almost any-  U.S. law enforcement approaches                                 analytical  capabilities,  and  special-
            where, in highly concentrated forms,  the fentanyl threat. Agencies now  HIDING IN GLOBAL COMMERCE    ized inspection technologies. This
            and moved through the same global   increasingly focus on identifying pre-  Primary  trafficking  routes  for   approach is continually being  en-
            trade, financial, and communications   cursor supply chains, mapping finan-  fentanyl include ports of entry, in-  hanced with  cutting-edge  technol-
            systems that support legitimate com-  cial and logistics networks, analyzing   ternational mail and express con-  ogies,  including  artificial  intelli-
            merce,” says  a  Homeland Security   digital communications, and disrupt-  signments,  and maritime borders.  gence  (AI)  and machine learning,
            Investigations  (HSI)  official  at  U.S.  ing  trafficking  systems  before  the  “Concealment methods are diverse,  to  identify  complex indicators and
            Embassy New Delhi. HSI is the prin-  drug reaches U.S. communities.   ranging from individuals and hidden   inspection results that may not
            cipal  investigative arm of the U.S.   “Our work is far less about isolat-  compartments in vehicles to being   be  apparent  through conventional
            Department of Homeland Security.  ed seizures and far more about sys-  disguised within legitimate cargo or   Continued on next page... >>

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