Punjab Police have made significant progress in disrupting organized drug trafficking networks by freezing assets totaling Rs 300 crore belonging to 750 drug smugglers over the past 15 months. The focus has shifted towards dismantling the financial infrastructure supporting cross-border smuggling operations, marking a crucial step in combating narco-hawala syndicates.
Since the launch of the anti-drug campaign, Punjab Police have intensified their efforts, conducting daily operations across all 28 police districts. This initiative has resulted in the registration of 46,937 FIRs under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and the apprehension of 65,884 individuals involved in drug-related activities.
Enforcement actions have led to significant seizures, including 2,950 kg of heroin, 792 kg of opium, 666 quintals of poppy husk, 71 kg of charas, 986 kg of ganja, 56 kg of ICE, and 55 lakh intoxicant pills and tablets. In addition to narcotics confiscations, the police have recovered Rs 20 crore in drug proceeds from the accused, further disrupting illicit financial flows.
To combat sophisticated evasion tactics employed by drug traffickers, Punjab Police have set up Financial Investigation Units (FIUs) in each district to support investigative efforts. This strategic enhancement has resulted in the arrest of 65 hawala operators and the recovery of Rs 8.85 crore in hawala transactions.
In a significant operation, assets worth Rs 5.09 crore linked to Sharma Forex Money Exchange in Phagwara were seized and frozen, revealing a money laundering scheme disguised as driver salary payments for a Pakistan-based handler through UAE channels. The crackdown on clandestine hawala channels has exposed various financial nodes in the cross-border network, including the recovery of Rs 20.55 lakh from a Bikaner-based operator in Ludhiana and the dismantling of a narco-arms nexus in Amritsar with the seizure of Rs 1.24 crore in Indian and foreign currency.
