Acting on intelligence, security forces on Monday foiled a bid to smuggle drugs across the international border after finding two bags dropped by a Pakistani drone containing more than five kilograms of heroin worth over. ₹25 crore in the international market, officials said.
According to officials, the seizure took place near Jatinder border outpost in RS Pura sector during a joint search operation led by the Border Security Force (BSF) and local police, PTI reported.
They added that the operation was launched around 6 am after a Pakistani drone was spotted flying over the Indian side of the border.
“During a search operation launched in the early hours of October 27 near Bidipur village, vigilant BSF personnel recovered two yellow colored packets (containing 10 small packets wrapped in them) weighing around 5,300 kg,” said a BSF spokesperson.
The spokesman added: “Suspected contraband was found on farmland near Bidipur village. The substance is suspected to be heroin and appears to have been dropped by a drone across the border. A thorough search of the area is underway.”
They added that the seizure of such a large amount of heroin prevented a major smuggling attempt from Pakistan and that the police have since registered a case.
Previous recovery
Formerly a yellow package containing 500 grams of heroin, valued at over ₹2 trillion was recovered near the international border in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district in July, just minutes after it was dropped by a Pakistani drone, officials said, adding that the latest recovery was done by BSF personnel in Kathua’s Hiranagar sector on Tuesday afternoon.
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On July 26, police seized half a kilogram of heroin, which was similarly dropped by a Pakistani drone in the border village of Chillyari in Samba district.
Drug-laden Pak drones ‘significant’ threat to India’s internal security, NCB report says
In related news, a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) report released in September said that over the past four years, there has been a “sharp” increase in sightings and recoveries of drug-laden drones entering India from Pakistan through the international border in Punjab, posing a “significant” threat to the country’s internal security.
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According to the 2024 annual report, drug enforcement agencies also saw a six-fold increase in seizures of synthetic drugs between 2019 and 2024.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah released the report during the second National Conference of Heads of Anti-Drug Task Forces (ANTF) from various states and Union Territories, which he inaugurated on Tuesday.
The NCB, the federal anti-narcotics agency under the Ministry of Home Affairs, said: “The use of drones for cross-border narcotics smuggling has emerged as a significant threat to India’s internal security, particularly along the Pakistan border in Punjab.
“This evolving modus operandi has replaced traditional smuggling methods and poses a complex challenge to law enforcement and border protection agencies,” said the report, accessed by PTI.
The report further noted a “sharp” increase in drone sightings and drug recovery in Punjab’s border districts such as Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur and Gurdaspur.
In 2024, the number of such seizures “multiplied” to 179 cases, compared to just three in 2021. Seized shipments consisted mainly of heroin and opium, the report said. Of the 179 drone-related smuggling cases reported on the India-Pakistan border last year, 163 happened in Punjab, 15 along the border in Rajasthan and one in Jammu and Kashmir.
The total amount of drugs found was approximately 236 kilograms, the report said. It also pointed to a “significant” trend showing a six-fold increase in seizures of synthetic drugs across the country between 2019 and 2024. These included ATS (amphetamine-type stimulants), MDMA, mephedrone and methaqualone, which are mostly abused by young people.
The report, which includes data on narcotics from across India, said, “About 11,994 kg of synthetic drugs were seized in 2024, compared to just 1,890 kg in 2019. This sharp increase is mainly due to high profitability and growing market demand for these substances.”
