Modi Govt Sets 2029 Target to Make India Drug-Free, Says Amit Shah

September 6, 2026

New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government has set a 2029 target to make India drug-free, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, outlining a three-year national campaign focused on enforcement, prevention, rehabilitation and coordination among central and state agencies.

Shah said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to making India drug-free as part of the vision of a developed India, just as the government worked to tackle the challenges posed by Naxalism and terrorism.

1 Lakh ‘Nashamukti Mitras’ to Be Trained

As part of the campaign, the government will train one lakh ‘Nashamukti Mitras’ (Drug-Free India Ambassadors) through platforms including the National Cadet Corps (NCC), National Service Scheme (NSS) and My Bharat.

The Ministry of Education, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and educational institutions have also resolved to work towards making educational campuses drug-free.

Shah said the Ministry of Home Affairs and state governments are working together to implement the campaign through a roadmap based on four key pillars:

• Intelligence- and operation-based enforcement
• Control of precursor chemicals and synthetic drugs
• Demand reduction and harm reduction
• Capacity building and coordination

Anti-Narcotics Task Forces in Every State

The government plans to provide 100 per cent central assistance for capacity building and coordination. Fully equipped Anti-Narcotics Task Forces (ANTFs) are to be established in every state by March 2027.

Shah also said arrangements would be made to ensure that forensic reports are available within 30 days. More than 25 components and action points have been identified for time-bound implementation.

He expressed confidence that the country would support the three-year ‘Drug-Free India’ campaign.

Target to Dismantle 100 Drug Networks

The government has set a target to dismantle 100 international and inter-state drug networks and bring back 100 fugitives linked to narcotics cases to India.

The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) will strengthen enforcement by using intelligence-sharing systems, investigating major drug cartels and coordinating with state agencies.

State police, ANTFs and district police will work together to prepare dossiers on drug kingpins, identify backward and forward linkages and conduct financial investigations in cases involving commercial quantities of drugs.

100 Illegal Drug Labs to Be Dismantled

Central agencies, including the CBI, Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), have been assigned roles in tracking drug mafias, tracing their financial networks and facilitating the return of fugitives.

The government will also strengthen surveillance at airports and cargo terminals through risk-based profiling scanners.

Shah said authorities have already made progress in destroying clandestine laboratories involved in producing precursor chemicals and synthetic drugs. The government has now set a target to dismantle 100 such laboratories over the next three years.

The Department of Revenue, Central Bureau of Narcotics, GSTN and Excise Department will coordinate efforts against the production and movement of illicit drugs and precursor chemicals.