NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday set December 31, 2029, as the deadline to dismantle the drug trade in India. Calling narcotics one of the country’s biggest threats, he urged states and central agencies to shift from seizure-driven enforcement to dismantling entire trafficking networks.
Addressing the third National Conference of Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) heads of states and Union Territories, Shah said the fight against drugs must become a “decisive battle” with clear targets, timelines and accountability.
He said the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) could not fight the menace alone and called for coordinated action by state governments, police, intelligence agencies and other departments.
“The Home Minister said the government’s ‘Vision Document 2026–2029’ provides a roadmap for the campaign, with more than 100 targets spread across four broad pillars including enforcement and intelligence-led operations; control of precursor chemicals and synthetic drugs; demand reduction and harm reduction and capacity building and coordination,” the MHA said in a statement.
Shah said the approach must move “from meeting to mission, from reporting to result, from seizure to dismantling networks, and from case to conviction”. He said enforcement agencies should target drug cartels at points of entry and production, inter-state distribution and local sales networks.
The Home Minister also called for greater focus on financial investigations, digital links and backward- and forward-link analysis to target the proceeds of drug trafficking. He urged states to strengthen action against synthetic drugs, precursor chemicals, dark-net markets, cryptocurrencies, new communication technologies and international trafficking networks.
As part of the campaign, Shah said the government has set a target of creating one lakh ‘Nashamukt Mitras’, with 46,780 already registered by various ministries. These volunteers will work in schools, colleges and other institutions to raise awareness among young people.
Shah also called for greater use of the PITNDPS Act, stronger coordination between investigators and public prosecutors to improve convictions, and efforts to deport and blacklist foreign nationals involved in drug trafficking. He said fugitives operating from abroad and supplying drugs to India must also be brought before Indian courts.
The two-day conference, organised by the NCB, brought together ANTF heads from all 36 states and Union Territories, along with representatives of central government departments and other stakeholders.
At the event, Shah launched television commercials against narcotic substances, unveiled the NCB’s redesigned website and laid the foundation stones for new NCB zonal complexes in Lucknow and Dehradun. The best-performing state and UT ANTFs were also honoured.
Shah said the conference would focus on turning the Vision Document 2026–2029 into measurable results. The MHA said the deliberations are expected to strengthen coordination between the NCB, ANTFs, central agencies and state governments under a “whole-of-government” approach to make anti-drug enforcement more targeted, intelligence-led and outcome-oriented.
