The source said the drugs were discovered in a cotton field only 200 meters (600 feet) from the border with Uzbekistan and belonged to a local criminal group, RIA Novosti reported.

"Most likely, the heroin was intended to be transported to Russia via Uzbekistan," the source said, adding that law enforcement officers were currently taking measures to detain members of the criminal group.

The narcotics trade has become an acute problem for the impoverished Central Asian republic of Tajikistan due to a continual flow of illegal drugs from neighboring Afghanistan, the world’s largest supplier of heroin and opium.