Punjab Police arrest 38,687 smugglers and seize 1714 kg heroin under the ‘Yudh Nashian Virudh’ anti-drug campaign launched in March 2025.

In the nine months since Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann ordered the start of the ongoing, decisive war on drugs, known as “Yudh Nashian Virudh,” Punjab Police have filed 26,256 first information reports (FIRs), arrested 38,687 drug smugglers, and recovered 1714 kg of heroin since March 1, 2025.

Under the command of Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav, Punjab Police has been conducting simultaneous daily operations in all 28 police districts of the state since the start of this anti-drug campaign. Notably, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann had requested that the Senior Superintendent of Police, Deputy Commissioners, and Commissioners of Police declare Punjab a drug-free state. A five-member Cabinet Subcommittee headed by Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema has also been established by the Punjab government to oversee the anti-drug campaign.

In addition to the 1714 kg of heroin that was recovered, police also found 561 kilograms of opium, 266 quintals of poppy husk, 40 kg of charas, 556 kg of ganja, 21 kg of ICE, 42 lakh pills and tablets of intoxicants, and ₹14.83 crore in drug money. On Day 275, Punjab Police apprehended 77 drug traffickers and found that they were in possession of 7.3 kilogram of heroin, 10 quintals of poppy seed, 547 intoxicant tablets, and Rs 5,500 in drug money.

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According to him, during the course of the daylong operation, more than 120 police teams, consisting of more than 1000 police officers, and 70 gazetted officers have conducted raids at up to 355 locations throughout the state, resulting in the filing of 61 first information reports (FIRs). During the operation, police teams have also checked up to 365 suspicious individuals.

In the meantime, the Punjab Police, as part of their “De-addiction” campaign, have persuaded 18 people to receive de-addiction and rehabilitation therapy as part of the state government’s three-pronged approach to eradicate drugs from the state: Enforcement, Drug Abuse, and Prevention (EDP).