The Punjab Police on Friday arrested 116 drug smugglers and recovered 4.5 kg of heroin and 1 kg of opium from their possession. With this, the total number of drug smugglers arrested has reached 21,495 in just 132 days.
The operation was conducted on the directions of Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, simultaneously across all 28 police districts of the state.
Notably, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has directed Commissioners of Police, Deputy Commissioners, and Senior Superintendents of Police to make Punjab a drug-free state.
The Punjab government has also constituted a five-member Cabinet Sub-Committee, led by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, to monitor the war against drugs.
Divulging details, Special DGP (Law and Order) Arpit Shukla informed that over 180 police teams, comprising more than 1,300 police personnel under the supervision of 86 gazetted officers, conducted raids at 459 locations across the state.
These efforts led to the registration of 85 First Information Reports (FIRs). Police teams also checked as many as 459 suspicious individuals during the day-long operation, he added.
The Special DGP further said that the state government has adopted a three-pronged strategy —Enforcement, De-addiction, and Prevention (EDP) — to eradicate drugs from Punjab. As part of the ‘De-addiction’ component, Punjab Police successfully persuaded 75 individuals to undergo de-addiction and rehabilitation treatment on Friday.