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| Drug syndicates using courier networks to smuggle narcotics | | "The growing reliance on courier channels by drug syndicates represents a significant challenge for law enforcement agencies already battling an alarming rise in narcotics trafficking. Investigators believe that the strategy is being adopted to bypass conventional checkpoints and reduce the risk of interception during transportation." | | ATUL SHARMA
Early Times Report
JAMMU, June 24: Even as the administration intensifies its Nasha Mukt Jammu and Kashmir Abhiyan, a disturbing new trend has emerged, with intelligence inputs suggesting that narco-terror networks are increasingly using courier, parcel and logistics services to smuggle drugs into different parts of the Union Territory.
Security and intelligence agencies have sounded an alert after receiving credible information that drug traffickers, operating in collaboration with cross-border handlers and narco-terror modules, are exploiting the rapidly expanding courier and logistics sector to transport narcotics while evading traditional surveillance mechanisms.
Sources said that the new modus operandi allows smugglers to conceal contraband in seemingly legitimate parcels, making detection more difficult and enabling drug consignments to reach urban centres and remote areas alike without attracting immediate suspicion.
The development has prompted authorities to launch a comprehensive monitoring drive targeting courier companies, parcel booking centres, transport operators and logistics firms across Jammu and Kashmir. Officials have been directed to maintain strict vigilance over suspicious consignments and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements aimed at preventing the misuse of delivery networks.
According to officials, the growing reliance on courier channels by drug syndicates represents a significant challenge for law enforcement agencies already battling an alarming rise in narcotics trafficking. Investigators believe that the strategy is being adopted to bypass conventional checkpoints and reduce the risk of interception during transportation.
Taking serious note of the threat, the District Magistrate of Samba has issued an order imposing enhanced regulatory restrictions on courier and parcel services as well as logistics operators under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023.
The order seeks to plug loopholes that could be exploited by drug traffickers and anti-national elements for the movement of narcotic substances and other illegal consignments. Courier agencies have been directed to strengthen customer verification procedures, maintain detailed records of consignors and recipients, and report any suspicious bookings to the authorities.
Officials said the restrictions were necessary in view of intelligence reports indicating attempts by drug smugglers and narco-terror operatives to use commercial transportation networks as a safe and convenient channel for the movement of narcotics.
Security agencies have repeatedly warned that proceeds from the narcotics trade are being used to finance terrorism and other unlawful activities in the region.
The nexus between drug trafficking and terrorism has emerged as a major security concern, particularly in border districts where smugglers constantly devise new methods to evade detection.
Authorities have made it clear that any courier service, logistics operator or individual found facilitating the transportation of contraband, whether knowingly or through negligence, will face strict legal action.
With the administration determined to dismantle the drug supply chain and curb narco-terror activities, officials say surveillance on courier and logistics networks will be significantly intensified in the coming weeks. The latest move is being viewed as part of a broader strategy to ensure that commercial delivery channels do not become a lifeline for drug traffickers seeking to spread the menace of narcotics across Jammu and Kashmir.
The crackdown comes amid sustained efforts by law enforcement agencies to make Jammu and Kashmir drug-free and to choke the financial networks that fuel both organized crime and terrorism. |
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