As part of the ongoing anti-drug campaign “Yudh Nashian Virudh,” launched by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann to eliminate the drug menace from the state, Punjab Police arrested 48 drug smugglers on the 31st day of the operation. The police recovered 16.7 kg of heroin and ₹34,300 in drug money. This brings the total number of drug smugglers arrested to 4,640 in just 31 days.
The operation, directed by Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav, was carried out across all 28 police districts of the state. Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has tasked the Commissioners of Police, Deputy Commissioners, and Senior Superintendents of Police with making Punjab a drug-free state. Additionally, the Punjab government has set up a 5-member Cabinet Sub-Committee, led by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, to oversee the war against drugs.
Special DGP Law and Order, Arpit Shukla, provided further details, stating that more than 200 police teams, comprising over 1,400 personnel and supervised by 99 gazetted officers, conducted raids at 518 locations across the state. This led to the registration of 35 FIRs and the questioning of 608 suspicious individuals during the day-long operation.
The Special DGP highlighted that the state government is implementing a three-pronged strategy—Enforcement, De-addiction, and Prevention (EDP)—to tackle drug issues. As part of the de-addiction efforts, Punjab Police successfully persuaded two individuals to seek treatment and rehabilitation.