Punjab Police arrest nearly 80,000 drug traffickers in major crackdown

Under the ‘War Against Drugs’ campaign led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, the Punjab Police have reported significant progress in combating narcotics trafficking. Between March 1, 2025, and September 10, 2026, authorities registered 60,582 FIRs and arrested 79,784 drug traffickers, including 708 major kingpins involved in 354 large-scale commercial cases.

Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav detailed massive drug seizures, including 3,803 kg of heroin, 976 kg of opium, 46 tons of poppy husk, 1,325 kg of cannabis, and 7.8 million narcotic pills or capsules. Notably, Punjab accounted for approximately 60 percent of the total heroin seized nationwide.

The Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) has achieved an 89 percent conviction rate through professional and scientific investigation methods. Out of 13,430 NDPS cases decided during this period, 11,981 resulted in convictions. Additionally, authorities seized or froze assets worth 366 crore rupees across 914 cases under Section 68-F of the NDPS Act and apprehended 102 hawala operators, recovering 11 crore rupees in hawala funds.