Although police in Jammu district of the Union Territory achieved significant success by arresting as many as 311 drug peddlers in 2025, agencies involved in tackling narco-terrorism are worried about a disturbing and alarming trend—women and even married couples are now emerging as active players in the narcotics trade.
Out of the total 311 drug peddlers arrested under the NDPS Act in Jammu district in 2025, 35 were women, exposing a dangerous shift in the drug supply chain. Police say women are no longer merely couriers but, in several cases, are operating as independent drug kingpins, running all-women networks to evade suspicion and outmanoeuvre security agencies.
Most shocking is the involvement of married couples who have allegedly turned drug trafficking into a joint criminal enterprise.
In March 2025, police from Gangyal Police Station in Jammu district apprehended a couple during a routine checkpoint operation. The suspects were intercepted at Purmandal Morh on the Jammu–Pathankot highway while travelling on a scooter from Bari Brahmana towards Kunjwani. During the search, heroin was recovered from their possession.
The arrested couple, identified as Jaspal Singh alias Deep Nagra, son of Daler Singh, and his wife Kajal Rajput, both residents of Old Satwari, Jammu, were allegedly drawn into the drug trade by influential drug lords.
In another incident, police recovered heroin worth crores of rupees from a Punjab-based couple—Lovepreet Singh and his wife Mandeep Kaur. The duo was caught smuggling narcotics in an Innova car intercepted by a police team. Both were immediately detained, and the heroin was confiscated.
Notably, most couples involved in drug peddling are themselves addicts, exploited by drug mafias due to their vulnerabilities. These couples are typically tasked with distributing narcotics within Jammu and Kashmir.
Jammu Police launch massive offensive against narco-terrorists
Despite these challenges, Jammu Police launched an aggressive, multi-pronged crackdown in 2025 to dismantle the growing drug menace. The campaign not only targeted street-level peddlers but also struck at the economic backbone and infrastructure of organised drug syndicates.
According to official data, 204 FIRs were registered under the NDPS Act, leading to the arrest of 311 accused, including 35 women. Police seized 71 vehicles used for drug trafficking. Of the total arrests, 207 were linked to heroin cases, while 51 were involved in non-heroin narcotics cases.
During last year's operations, police recovered over 15 kilograms of heroin, valued at nearly ₹60 crore in the international market. In addition, massive quantities of other contraband were seized, including 78 kg of marijuana, 114 kg of poppy straw, hashish, opium, capsules, and other synthetic drugs.
Acting against organised networks, police busted 11 commercial-quantity cases, arresting 38 hardcore traffickers. Eleven notorious drug lords were detained under the stringent PIT-NDPS Act. To choke the financial lifeline of the drug mafia, police seized three immovable properties worth ₹85.70 lakh and a vehicle valued at ₹11.40 lakh.
In a visible show of zero tolerance, three major drug hotspots were razed, and 23 illegal drug-related structures were demolished across the district in 2025. Strong investigations led to convictions in 48 NDPS cases, underlining the police's focus on watertight prosecution.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Jammu, Joginder Singh, said supply-chain investigations resulted in 12 additional FIRs and the arrest of 36 accused from Jammu, Punjab, Kathua, Udhampur, and Rajouri. He added that administrative and financial probes played a crucial role in exposing hidden networks.
In another major push, narcotics seized in 82 cases under Section 52-A of the NDPS Act were destroyed. The destroyed contraband included 5,293 kg of poppy husk, 49 kg of cannabis, 44 kg of hashish, heroin, brown sugar, thousands of capsules and tablets, and hundreds of bottles of cough syrup, collectively worth several crores of rupees.
Beyond enforcement, SSP Joginder Singh said Jammu Police also focused on awareness and rehabilitation. In 2025, police organised 27 drug awareness programmes, 325 PCPG meetings, 179 Police Station Days, and 469 IEC campaigns.
At the Police Drug De-addiction and Rehabilitation Centre, Chhanni (Jammu), 1,667 outpatients were treated, while 311 patients were admitted for rehabilitation.
Appealing to citizens to join the fight against drugs, police urged the public to share any information related to drug trafficking or abuse on the helpline number 100, assuring that the identity of informants would be kept strictly confidential.
