Home minister says drug-free youth power will help realise Modi’s vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047.
NEW DELHI: Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday said the Centre had prepared a roadmap to make India drug-free by 2029, in line of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's objective that drug-free youth power would lead to Viksit Bharat in 2047.
The Modi government was committed to making the country drug-free to realise the dream of a developed India, just as it has worked to end the menace of Naxalism and terrorism, Shah, said addressing a press conference in Goa after chairing a high level meeting on narcotics that was attended by Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant as well as Union home ministry and state government officials.
The Centre has adopted a coordinated, nationwide strategy to dismantle the entire narcotics network, from drug trafficking and financing to rehabilitation, as part of its goal of 'Drug-Free India' by 2029, he said.
Shah said the Centre had a target to demolish 100 national and international networks by March 2029 and bring back 100 fugitives to the country. By March 2027, there will be clear end-to-end visibility of the supply chain while at least 75 secret labs would be destroyed in 2026, he said.
He said the government had also adopted a mission-mode approach to bring back fugitives hiding abroad. Between July 2019 and July 2026, 274 wanted or absconding criminals were brought back to India from 36 countries, he said. Over the past three years, 401 red corner notices have been issued, including 182 up to July.
Shah said more than 1,400 Central and state agencies were connected through Interpol, facilitating faster information sharing. Between 2019 and 2026, assets worth `17,874 crore belonging to fugitives were attached, while ₹18,762 crore was recovered or restored.
"Before 2014, the fight against narcotics was largely conducted in small units and isolation. Agencies were often satisfied catching small-time accused. Our government is making the fight national security priority," he said.
Under the Narendra Modi regime, Jammu and Kashmir was on the path to progress and development after the decline of terrorism, which is gradually approaching zero there, the minister said. The sentiment of separatism had waned post the abrogation of Article 370, Shah said.
"The Modi government has taken various steps to improve and strengthen internal security. Those who dreamt of a 'red' (Maoist) corridor from Tirupati to Pashupati have laid down arms and joined the mainstream. The northeast is also calm. Over 10,000 young people have laid down arms," he said.
Shah stated that Naxalism, which persisted for five decades, has become a thing of the past. :We have eradicated Naxalism and will deal with the menace of narcotics in the same manner," the Union minister asserted.
In 2019, a four-tier National Coordination Committee for Countering Drug Trafficking (NCORD) mechanism was created at the executive, state and district levels to ensure coordinated action against the drug menace. "Dedicated Anti-Narcotics Task Forces (ANTFs) have been constituted in all states and Union Territories and local police have been linked with the national strategy," Shah said.
The government had linked awareness, treatment, counselling, rehabilitation and livelihood opportunities with the anti-narcotics campaign, he pointed out, adding that the ‘1933’ MANAS helpline has been introduced to support persons with drug addiction.
The Modi government's three-year roadmap to a drug-free India is based on a four-pillared approach to destroy narcotic networks, Shah said. "These pillars include intelligence and operation-based enforcement, control on synthetic drugs, demand and harm reduction and creation of capacity and coordination," he added.
