CHENNAI: In a bid to strengthen action against drug trafficking and narcotics networks, the Tamil Nadu government has reconstituted Chennai’s Anti-Narcotics Intelligence Unit (ANIU) as a state-wide Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF).
The police said the newly formed ANTF has been given powers to gather intelligence and pursue prosecution in narcotics-related cases.
As part of the expansion, dedicated ANTF teams have been formed in the Flower Bazaar, Washermenpet and Pulianthope police districts in north Chennai. Each team comprises an SI and five personnel drawn from various police stations in the respective districts and functions under the supervision of the Prohibition Enforcement Wing, North Zone.
The police said the units will focus on surveillance, raids, intelligence collection and coordinated operations targeting drug peddlers and smuggling networks. Until the transition from ANIU to ANTF is fully completed, detained suspects will continue to be handed over to local police stations for further legal action.