KOCHI: A widening gap in drug arrest numbers has started straining relations between the Kochi police and the excise department, with officers from both sides quietly questioning each other’s role in a city battling an expanding narcotics network.
Police data shows that police officers, while handling law & order duties, traffic management and emergency response, have far outpaced their excise counterparts in drug-related arrests over the past two years, a disparity that has triggered frustration within police ranks and elicited explanations from excise officials.
In Kochi city, police arrested 2,475 drug suppliers in 2024. The figure climbed to 3,005 in 2025. In comparison, excise officials across Ernakulam district booked 1,010 and 1,625 drug suppliers, respectively, according to official records. The gap has sharpened tensions on the ground.
“Along with enforcing the NDPS Act, we are burdened with law and order, crime detection, traffic control and public safety,” said a senior police officer, requesting anonymity.
“Excise does not carry these responsibilities. Despite that, we are registering far more drug cases. Until excise starts booking drug sellers anywhere close to our numbers, this imbalance will remain glaring.” Several cops admitted that the disparity fuels resentment during daily fieldwork. “We are on the streets from morning till night. When the numbers are compared, the frustration is natural,” an officer said.
Excise officials, however, argue that the comparison overlooks the severe limitations under which they operate.
In Ernakulam district, only about 30 excise officers in the rank of sub-inspector and above are authorised to register NDPS cases. These officers share around 23 vehicles. Kochi city faces an even thinner deployment, with just seven such officers and five vehicles assigned to cover the entire urban area.
“We simply lack the manpower or mobility that the police have. Expecting similar results without similar resources is unrealistic,” said a senior excise officer.
Court duties further weaken field presence. “On most days, at least two officers are tied up with court proceedings in the city. The same situation exists in the district,” said another excise officer. “This reduces the number of officers available for field operations.”
Intelligence gathering also remains a challenge. Police benefit from a dense network of stations, patrol teams and informers spread across Kochi. Excise officers admit their department lacks such extensive ground-level intelligence, limiting proactive detection of drug movements.
At present, the excise department has around 360 personnel across the district, including support personnel. Several officers said the force would need at least double the strength to significantly increase drug seizures and arrests to match the scale of the narcotics trade.
A retired excise official said the friction between the two forces reflects a deeper structural imbalance rather than individual failure.
“I once had a heated argument with a top police officer over the issue,” the ex-official said.
“They believe we are not spending enough time in the field. However, with this staff strength, how can we function like the police? Unless the government addresses this imbalance, the blame game will continue while drug networks exploit the gaps.”
As Kochi’s drug problem grows more complex and organised, officers on both sides agree on one point: without closing resource gaps and improving coordination, arrest numbers alone will not be enough to bust the city’s expanding drug network.