As part of International Anti-Drug Day, 16 tons of seized drugs are to be burnt today at Thailand's annual drug incineration ceremony. CGTN's Dusita Saokaew reports from the Ayutthaya Province of Thailand.

DUSITA SAOKAEW AYUTTHAYA PROVINCE, THAILAND: 

Government officials in Thailand are preparing for the 49th annual drug burning to mark the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. 20 000 million Thai baht (or around $640 million) worth of narcotics will be incinerated today- that's all together, more than 16000 kilograms of drugs confiscated in around 6700 narcotics cases and raid throughout the year. Even with some of the harshest drug laws in the world, Thai authorities are struggling to curb the massive flow of drugs devastating the country.

And as you see, Thai police getting all the narcotics onto the stage- heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, crystal meth. But by far, the most, inside these cardboard boxes, stacked up on top of each other, is methamphetamine pills or yaba as it is called in Thai. This is public enemy number one and it's the explosion of meth that is really causing havoc not only in Thailand but all around the world.

What you see on display today is just a drop in the ocean compared to the enormous wave of synthetic drugs surging into Thailand every day. Experts believe that law enforcement confiscate only 10 percent of total drug production in this region. Here's the problem- bigger, multi-million-dollar shipments are becoming more frequent- A testament to meth labs on overdrive.

Due to the sheer geographic position of the country, Thailand is doomed when it comes to this thriving drug trade. The Golden Triangle, bordering north-eastern Myanmar, Laos and Thailand, has a long history of illicit drug trafficking. Historically, it was heroin. Today, it's meth. This lawless, mountainous region provides the perfect conditions for drug production to flourish. Once produced, these drugs cross the Mekong river, into Thailand, then on to drug-hungry markets all around the world.

It's really become impossible for authorities to control. Joint patrols of the Mekong River started in 2011 by China, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand. But policing and surveillance of the vast 4000km stretch of river, is extremely difficult. Drug cartels seem to always be a step ahead and find alternative routes to move their drugs. On the streets, prices are plunging- evidence of a huge oversupply from the meth lords who have slashed costs by using cheaper chemicals and raw materials. A decade ago, a yaba pill was around $7, now it's less than $2 a pill. Seizures use to be 1-2 million pills, now its 20 million pills per shipment.

But for all the drugs here today, it's the end of the road. This will all be put into the incinerator at a temperature above 800 degrees celcius. This will turn the molecules into carbon in a very short amount of time. So there will be no effects on the environment or the air. And as Thai officials try to show here that they are serious about fighting this drug crisis, it also highlights an urgent need for a new approach in tackling this war on drugs.

Dusita Saokaew, CGTN, Ayutthaya, Thailand.