Lahore: In alignment with Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s vision for a Drug-Free Punjab, the Punjab Police have ramped up their operations against narcotics, conducting widespread raids across the province under the supervision of top supervisory officers.
According to Punjab Police, the intensified efforts have led to 344 raids in just one day, targeting drug dealers’ hideouts throughout Punjab, resulting in the arrest of 197 suspects and the registration of 191 cases. A significant haul of 315 kilograms of charas and 2,294 liters of alcohol was seized during these operations. Since the commencement of this special campaign on February 26, police teams have executed 42,823 raids, apprehending 20,459 suspects and filing 19,919 cases, with seizures including 12,699 kilograms of charas, 233 kilograms of heroin, 294 kilograms of opium, 66 kilograms of ice, and over 1.73 million liters of alcohol.
Inspector General of Punjab Police, Dr. Usman Anwar, has directed Regional Police Officers (RPOs) and District Police Officers (DPOs) to accelerate the special operations, with a particular focus on hotspots and the online drug trade. Anwar also mandated regular search and combing operations around educational institutions and called for heightened awareness campaigns in collaboration with parents, teachers, and civil society to tackle this issue effectively. The IG emphasized the importance of stringent measures against criminals involved in inter-provincial and inter-district smuggling to ensure they face strict penalties.