The United States is certainly sending India mixed signals with its recent behaviour. The U.S. embassy in India has reportedly revoked and denied visas of some Indian business executives and corporate leaders over their alleged involvement in trafficking fentanyl precursors.
The embassy said in a statement on Thursday that “these individuals and close family members may be ineligible for travel” to the U.S., it also said it would subject executives connected with companies known to have trafficked fentanyl precursors to heightened scrutiny if they applied for visas.
“The US embassy in New Delhi is committed to fighting illicit drug trafficking,” said chargé d’affaires Jorgan Andrews.
Fentanyl precursors are chemical substances used to synthesize fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid. These precursors can be legal industrial chemicals, but when combined or modified, they become the building blocks of illicit fentanyl. Even tiny amounts can cause overdose or death.
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These substances are often regulated, but traffickers find ways to modify or substitute them to avoid detection. Many precursors are produced in chemical factories, especially in China and India, and then shipped globally, sometimes disguised as legitimate goods.
Two Indian firms, Raxuter Chemicals and Athos Chemicals Pvt. Ltd., along with senior executive Bhavesh Lathiya, were indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice for exporting controlled precursors such as 1-boc-4-piperidone, which is used in the synthesis of illicit fentanyl. The shipments were often mislabelled to bypass customs, with contents falsely declared as harmless products like Vitamin C. These indictments marked a significant step in the U.S. crackdown on international fentanyl supply chains, particularly those originating in South Asia.
Separately, the U.S. Embassy in India revoked and denied visas to several Indian businesspeople and their families in September, citing ties to fentanyl-related chemical exports.
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While specific names were not always made public, the action highlighted growing U.S. pressure on India to tighten regulation of its chemical and pharmaceutical sectors. At the same time, Indian authorities, including the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), arrested suspects allegedly connected to shipments of fentanyl precursors to Mexico and Guatemala. These cases reflect the deepening international collaboration to curb the synthetic opioid crisis and disrupt supply chains at their source.
The U.S. embassy said the action was taken “in furtherance to the Trump administration’s efforts to keep Americans safe from dangerous synthetic narcotics” and was legally backed by the provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
While fentanyl remains a major contributor to the opioid crisis in the United States, efforts to control its spread now extend far beyond its borders, targeting chemical suppliers and exporters in countries like India. The recent U.S. actions, including visa revocations and indictments, signal a more aggressive stance on holding foreign entities accountable. However, these moves also raise questions about consistency, transparency, and the potential impact on bilateral relations and legitimate business.