Customs authorities seized 73 kilograms of drugs in 49 trafficking cases in the first four months of the year, 35 kilograms of which were ketamine, according to sources from the Beijing-based General Administration of Customs (GAC) on Sunday.

"The GAC has paid much more attention to the increasing amount of ketamine smuggled into the mainland this year," they said.

Only 15 grams of ketamine were seized by customs in the first quarter of last year, and the increase has been put down to the huge profits available.

GAC officers have prosecuted 15 cases of ketamine smuggling so far this year. Most were people carrying the drug in their luggage, with 10 carrying more than two kilograms each.

Ketamine hydrochloride is used as an anaesthetic in both animals and humans, but its recreational use is on the rise among young people, often in clubs. Its effects can vary widely depending on where and how it is used, and can be dangerous particularly if used in high doses or in combination with other substances.

One man named Zheng had almost seven kilograms in his baggage when trying to enter the mainland through Luohu, a port in Shenzhen. Further investigations led to the arrest of three others involved in the case.

Early last month at Gaoqi Airport in Xiamen, Fujian Province, customs inspectors discovered about three kilograms of ketamine packed as food. After netting the suspect, customs officers caught another waiting to receive the drugs.

More than 15 kilograms have also been seized this year in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province.

(China Daily May 9, 2005)