India aims to wipe out drug trafficking by 2029, Home Minister says
Amit Shah outlined a five‑year plan that will use financial probes, digital tracking and profit seizures to dismantle drug networks across the country.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah told a national conference that the government intends to eradicate the drug trade in India by the close of 2029. He said the target is not merely to curb individual dealers but to dismantle entire trafficking chains, from street‑level peddlers to the cartels that finance them.
According to The Hindu, Shah emphasized that enforcement agencies must pivot to financial investigations, trace digital footprints and seize the profits that fuel organised crime. He warned that traditional policing alone cannot break the sophisticated networks that use money‑laundering and encrypted communications to evade detection.
The minister called for tighter coordination among the Narcotics Control Bureau, state police, the Enforcement Directorate and cyber‑crime units. He urged these bodies to share intelligence in real time and to adopt a “profit‑first” approach, targeting the revenue streams that enable drug cartels to operate.
India’s drug problem has deepened over the past decade, with seizures of heroin, synthetic opioids and illicit cannabis rising sharply. The 2019 amendment to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act introduced harsher penalties, yet traffickers have adapted by exploiting digital platforms and cross‑border money‑laundering schemes. Past operations, such as the 2022 “Operation Blue Lotus,” demonstrated the challenges of dismantling hierarchies that span multiple states and foreign jurisdictions.
Experts say the 2029 deadline sets a clear benchmark but will require sustained political will and resources. International cooperation, especially with neighbouring countries that serve as transit routes, will be crucial. If successful, the plan could reduce drug‑related mortality and crime, though critics caution that aggressive profit‑seizure tactics risk collateral damage to legitimate businesses if due process is not rigorously upheld.
Shah concluded by promising periodic reviews of progress and indicated that a dedicated task force will report to the Home Ministry annually. The timeline, he said, is intended to keep agencies accountable and to signal to criminal syndicates that India will not tolerate the drug trade any longer.
This report is based on original reporting by The Hindu. Read the original source →