Punjab sees shift in drug trade: Heroin availability falls, pharmaceutical narcotics emerge as major challenge
Anti-drug crackdown along Pakistan border leads to sharp decline in street heroin; police deploy new drone-detection technology
Babushahi Bureau
Chandigarh, September 13, 2026: Punjab Police has reported a significant shift in the state’s drug landscape, with intensified action against narcotics smuggled from across the Pakistan border leading to a decline in the availability of street heroin, while pharmaceutical drugs smuggled from other states have emerged as a major challenge.
According to a Punjab Police spokesperson, the changing pattern of drug trafficking has prompted the state to step up surveillance, strengthen inter-state coordination and focus on the diversion of pharmaceutical narcotics into Punjab.
The police said a multi-layered strategy involving anti-drone technology, rapid-response teams, coordination with the Border Security Force (BSF), CCTV surveillance and intelligence-led operations has helped disrupt the supply of drugs being smuggled across the international border.
Punjab Police currently has nine anti-drone systems, including three Baaj Akh systems operational in Amritsar, Tarn Taran and Ferozepur since August 2025.
In the latest move, three Drone Sense D200 Pro units — long-endurance mobile drone-detection platforms — were deployed at strategic locations in border districts from September 3. Police said the systems can detect and pinpoint drone activity and suspected locations where consignments are dropped, allowing ground teams to respond quickly.
The anti-drone network is backed by 52 Drone Response Teams comprising 147 police personnel, which work in coordination with the BSF to respond to alerts, search suspected drop locations and intercept people allegedly involved in collecting smuggled consignments.
The state has also deployed 64 second-line defence nakas involving around 600 personnel, while 2,367 CCTV cameras at 585 locations are being used for surveillance.
Village Defence Committees in border areas have also been integrated with the Drone Response Teams. According to police, these committees act as the “eyes and ears” of the force in vulnerable border areas.
The crackdown has also resulted in nearly 80,000 arrests since March 1, 2025, according to the police. A total of 486 drones have been recovered, while financial investigations have led to the freezing of properties worth more than Rs 336 crore, the spokesperson said.
Under the police reward policy, an informant can receive Rs 25,000 for every recovered drone. Nearly Rs 2 crore has reportedly been disbursed under the scheme during the current year.
Pharmaceutical drugs emerge as new challenge
With the availability of street heroin reportedly declining, police said the nature of drug trafficking in Punjab is changing, with pharmaceutical narcotics increasingly entering the state from other parts of the country.
According to data analysed from pharmaceutical drug seizures, many of the drugs being recovered in Punjab are manufactured outside the state, particularly in Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi.
Since 2025, police have recovered 11.54 lakh pharmaceutical tablets and capsules from consignments linked to other states, including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh.
Punjab Police estimates that around 80 per cent of pharmaceutical drugs reaching the state are being sourced from other states, marking a reversal of the earlier pattern in which a substantial proportion of drugs was allegedly smuggled across the Pakistan border.
The police said the emerging trend makes stronger coordination with source and transit states essential.
Punjab Police plans to take up the issue with the concerned state governments, seeking tighter regulation of pharmaceutical manufacturing units and closer monitoring of the sale, purchase and transportation of such medicines to prevent their diversion into Punjab.
The police said its anti-drug strategy now combines enforcement with financial investigations, community participation, surveillance, rehabilitation and prevention, as the state attempts to disrupt both the supply chains and the changing patterns of drug abuse.