Punjab Drug Crisis: Causes, Drug Trafficking and Solutions

Punjab Drug Crisis Latest News

• Punjab’s drug crisis has triggered fresh unrest. Recently, police took custody of the body of 35-year-old Daljit Singh, who died of a suspected overdose. 
• His family was taking the body to a protest site in Mansa. At that site, the family of activist Parvinder Singh Jhota was already protesting. Jhota was shot dead on October 13 by a chemist he had confronted over the sale of prohibited drugs.
• With Assembly elections due next year, drugs have become a central political issue in the state.

Scale of the Problem

• Punjab has struggled with drugs for nearly 15 years. The problem shows no sign of easing.
• As per NCRB 2024 data (released September 2026):
  • Punjab leads India with 6,060 drug trafficking cases.
  • It recorded 106 overdose deaths, second only to Tamil Nadu (313).

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Historical Roots: Social Acceptance of Intoxicants

• Intoxicants have a long history in Punjab.
• Before Independence, opium (afeem) and poppy husk were socially accepted. People consumed them in small quantities, often on a doctor’s advice.
  • The Royal Commission on Opium (1894) found that opium use in India was generally very low, but had been common for centuries among certain groups in North India.
• Home-brewed liquor (desi daru) was the most popular and accepted form of intoxication.
• Opium use continued after Independence despite a state ban. People simply crossed into Rajasthan, which had legal opium shops (thekas). 
• A 1979 study found opium use was widespread in rural Punjab, even though it had to be smuggled in.

Geographic Vulnerability

• Proximity to the Golden Crescent
  • Punjab shares a 553-km border with Pakistan. This makes it a natural transit route for drugs.
  • The Golden Crescent (Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran) is one of three major global heroin-processing centres. 
    • The other two are the Golden Triangle (Myanmar, Thailand, Laos) and South America.
  • Police officials describe the problem as narco-terrorism. They say Pakistan began pushing drugs into Punjab to weaken the state after militancy declined.
• Multiple Supply Routes
  • Heroin (chitta): Smuggled across the porous Pakistan border.
  • Opium and poppy husk: From Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, where cultivation is legal for medical, scientific and export purposes.
  • Charas and hashish: From Himachal Pradesh.
  • High-quality heroin: Suspected to come from Delhi via Gujarat, Rajasthan (Ganganagar, Hanumangarh) or Jammu and Kathua.

Rise of Pharmaceutical Drugs

• Tighter border enforcement pushed users towards pharmaceutical drugs. In 2021, the Centre extended the BSF’s jurisdiction from 15 km to 50 km inland.
  • In 2024, India seized 5.13 crore pharma drug units. Punjab alone accounted for 2.94 crore, more than half.
  • About 25% of NDPS FIRs filed by Punjab Police in 2022 involved pharma drugs.
  • Around 80% of these drugs come from manufacturing hubs in Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan.
• The Jhota killing itself was linked to the illegal sale of pharma drugs.

Drones: A New Smuggling Tool

• Drone-based smuggling has grown sharply.
• BSF data shows drone droppings rose from 3 in 2021 to over 200 in 2025.
• Most are small Chinese quadcopters carrying heroin and weapons. They now land even in daylight. The Amritsar–Tarn Taran–Ferozepur–Gurdaspur belt is the core of this corridor.
• The BSF has set up an anti-drone intelligence wing. Punjab Police has bought anti-drone guns. Yet smugglers continue to escape.

Economics of the Drug Trade

• High Profits, Few Jobs: The trade survives crackdowns because it pays well. A gram of chitta sells for ₹1,000–5,000. One trip as a drug carrier can earn about ₹1 lakh. This matters in a state where jobs do not match the high aspirations of youth. 
• Changing Social Values: Experts also point to changing social values, where wealth earned through illegal means is increasingly accepted.
• Nexus of Traffickers, Police and Politicians: An alleged nexus protects the trade. The 2013 arrest of DSP Jagdish Singh Bhola in a large drug racket exposed this link. He was convicted in 2019.

Growing Role of Women

• Arrests of women under the NDPS Act rose 85% in 2022 compared with 2015.
• Traffickers use women because they are less likely to be frisked and can carry drugs on buses.
• Entire families are often drawn in. Many women addicts become peddlers to fund their own addiction.

Policy Responses Over the Years

• Since the then government declared a “war on drugs” in 2014, Punjab has followed the EDP approach — Enforcement, De-addiction and Prevention.
  • Introduced dope tests for arms licences and new government recruitment.
  • Focused on catching big traffickers while running large-scale awareness campaigns.
  • Yudh Nasheyan Virudh (March 2025): Targeted traffickers’ finances and demolished houses built with drug money.
  • Phase 2 (2026): Shifted to community action, deploying over 1.5 lakh village volunteers (“Pind De Pehredar”).
• Despite these efforts, drugs remain easily available. Experts argue the EDP model has the wrong priorities. They believe prevention and rehabilitation should come before enforcement, not after it.

Conclusion

• Punjab’s drug crisis is rooted in history, geography and economic distress. Enforcement alone has failed to curb it. 
• A lasting solution needs stronger regulation of pharma drugs, better border technology, breaking the trafficker-police-politician nexus, youth employment, and greater focus on prevention and rehabilitation.

Source: IE