Amit Shah announces three-year nationwide campaign against drugs from March 31
New Delhi (PTI): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday announced a crackdown on narcotics from March 31 with a three-year nationwide campaign to weed out the drug menace from the country.
Addressing the 9th Apex-level meeting of the Narco-Coordination Centre (NCORD), Shah said that as part of the collective campaign, a working methodology for all pillars against drug abuse will be defined, targets will be set, and time-bound reviews will be conducted.
According to the date announced by the home minister, the campaign against drugs will be launched immediately after the deadline set by him to wipe out Naxalism ends on March 31.
Shah also virtually inaugurated a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) office in Amritsar on the occasion.
The meeting, organised in hybrid mode by the NCB, was attended by key stakeholders from Central ministries and departments, representatives from state governments, as well as drug law enforcement agencies, according to a government statement.
Shah directed all the departments to prepare a roadmap by March 31 to deal with the drug problem, establish a monitoring mechanism, and focus completely on it, so that a comprehensive solution can be found.
“In the next three years, we have to fight on all fronts against drugs across the country and make India 'drug-free’, and make every effort to protect the country's youth from drugs,” Shah said.
“Only continuous awareness can keep us safe,” Shah said, and asserted that the government wants to create a permanent system capable of fighting this battle against drugs.
The home minister said the government's policy is clear that no compassion should be shown to those who manufacture or sell narcotics.
“We should move forward with a humanitarian approach towards the victims of drugs,” he said.
In the fight against drugs, all departments of the Central government should prepare a roadmap up to 2029 and establish a time-bound review mechanism for its implementation, he said.
Shah also appealed to all the DGPs to prepare a roadmap for their respective states and take concrete steps for the timely destruction of drugs.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set the goal of making India number one in the world in every field by 2047, when the centenary of Independence is celebrated. To create such an India, it is the responsibility of all of us to provide complete protection to the young generation from drugs,” the home minister said.
He also said that the challenge is linked more to the issue of narco-terror than to law and order, and most importantly, it is a conspiracy to ruin the coming generations of the country.
The health of the youth, their ability to think and perform, and the growing discontent in society are all linked to this problem, he said.
Under Prime Minister Modi, considerable success has been achieved in the past 11 years in the fight against drugs, and after the reorganisation of NCORD in 2019, “we have also ensured the path to complete control over this problem”, Shah said.
“Now we have gained speed and will move forward with a three-pronged plan of action,” he said.
Only a "collective ruthless approach" towards the drug supply chain, a strategic approach towards demand reduction, and a humane approach towards harm reduction will achieve the goal of a drug-free India, he said.
“We must proceed in this fight only by strengthening command, compliance and accountability,” the home minister said.
He added that instead of the number of meetings, their outcomes should be reviewed, with strict action taken against the kingpins of the drug trade, financiers, and logistics routes as subjects of such assessments.
The minister also said that the utilisation of forensic science laboratories (FSLs) and increasing the rate of timely filing of chargesheets and securing convictions should be included in the targets.
A top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top approach is extremely essential for investigating the entire drug network, he said.
From 2004 to 2013, drugs weighing 26 lakh kg worth Rs 40,000 crore were seized, whereas from 2014 to 2025, 1.11 lakh kg of drugs worth Rs 1.71 lakh crore were seized, marking an 11-fold increase, Shah said.
In 2020, opium crop on 10,770 acres of land was destroyed, and by November 2025, crops on 40,000 acres of land were destroyed, he added.
“The NCORD mechanism has a four-tier structure with an apex-level NCORD committee, which is headed by the Union home secretary; an executive-level NCORD committee headed by the special secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs; state-level NCORD committees headed by chief secretaries; and district-level NCORD committees headed by district magistrates,” the statement said.
The mechanism was established in 2016 to enhance coordination between the states, the Ministry of Home Affairs and concerned stakeholders in addressing the challenge of drug menace holistically, it said.
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Woman shot dead in Delhi; police suspect link to 2023 murder of her husband
New Delhi (PTI): A 44-year-old woman was shot dead at point-blank range in northwest Delhi's Shalimar Bagh on Saturday, with police suspecting the killing to be a fallout of the 2023 murder of her husband, an official said.
The deceased was identified as Rachna Yadav, a resident of Shalimar Bagh and the resident welfare association (RWA) president of her locality. According to police, she was shot in the head and died on the spot.
Police said Rachna was originally from Bhalswa village in north-west Delhi. Investigators suspect that the murder is linked to the killing of her husband, Vijendra Yadav, who was shot dead in 2023. The case concerning that murder is currently under trial.
"In the 2023 case, Vijendra Yadav was allegedly murdered due to previous enmity. Bharat Yadav and five others were named as accused. While five of the accused were arrested and are facing trial, the main accused, Bharat Yadav, is still absconding and has been declared a proclaimed offender," a senior police officer said.
Police said Rachna was the main witness in her husband's murder case, and her testimony was considered vital for the prosecution. Investigators believe her killing may have been aimed at weakening the case and intimidating other witnesses.
CCTV footage has surfaced in the Rachna Yadav murder case, clearly capturing the accused who allegedly shot her. Police said the assailant's accomplice was already waiting nearby on a sports bike bearing a Delhi registration number, facilitating a swift escape, according to an official.
Police said a PCR call was received at around 10.59 am at Shalimar Bagh police station, reporting that a woman had been shot.
Local police teams rushed to the spot and found Rachna lying on the road in a pool of blood. An empty cartridge was recovered from the scene, officials said.
According to the investigation, when Rachna was returning after meeting a neighbour, two assailants intercepted her. One of them allegedly stopped her and asked her name. When she identified herself, the attacker pulled out a firearm and shot her in the head before fleeing the spot along with his accomplice, police said.
Preliminary inquiry suggested that the woman was targeted, and the assailants appeared to have prior knowledge about her identity and movements.
"Crime Team and FSL teams were immediately called, and the scene of the crime was thoroughly examined. CCTV footage from nearby areas is being scanned to identify the assailants," Additional Commissioner of Police (Northwest) Bhisham Singh said.
Prima facie, it appears that the present case is linked to the earlier murder, he said. "We are re-examining all aspects of the 2023 case and the role of the proclaimed offender (Bharat)," Singh said, adding that multiple teams have been formed to trace the shooters and those who may have masterminded the crime.
Speaking to reporters, Kanika Yadav, the deceased's elder daughter, alleged that the murder was planned by Bharat.
"Some of the accused in my father's murder case are lodged in Tihar Jail. Despite that, they are planning such crimes. Bharat Yadav planned and executed my mother's murder," she alleged.
Kanika claimed her mother was killed because she was standing firm as a witness in her father's murder case.
"They were afraid that they would be convicted on the basis of her statement. That is why my mother was killed. My father was murdered in 2023, and the case is still pending before the court," she said.
Police said Rachna is survived by two daughters, one of whom is married, while the younger daughter lived with her. Security has been stepped up in the area, and further investigation is underway, police added.
