Village Defence Committees report 41% rise in feedback; over 5,500 alleged drug smugglers arrested this year on VDC inputs

Chandigarh, 15 September (H.S.): Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Tuesday said the state’s “Yudh Nashean Virudh” campaign had entered its final phase and directed the police and civil administration to intensify action against drug peddlers, suppliers and smugglers.

Chairing a high-level review meeting, Mann interacted virtually with Deputy Commissioners, Commissioners of Police, Senior Superintendents of Police and senior police officers from across Punjab. He reviewed the performance of Village Defence Committees (VDCs), action against alleged drug networks and the mechanism for acting on public complaints.

The Chief Minister said the campaign had moved beyond a police-led operation and was increasingly becoming a public movement. According to the state government, feedback received from VDCs on drug-related activities has increased by 41 per cent.

Mann said 14,846 VDCs with 74,230 active members are functioning across Punjab. Of these, 3,808 committees comprising 36,814 members are active in border areas, where community inputs are considered important for identifying suspected smuggling networks.

Citing government data, the Chief Minister said 4,129 FIRs had been registered and 5,589 alleged drug smugglers arrested since January on the basis of information received through VDCs.

He also highlighted the role of the Safe Punjab App, saying that over the past more than a year, around 19,310 FIRs had been registered and 25,138 alleged smugglers arrested following complaints received through the platform.

Mann said the government had made progress in disrupting drug supply chains but warned officers against lowering their guard. He directed police teams to identify remaining drug hotspots and ensure swift action on credible information received from villages and local communities.

The Chief Minister also asked officers to simplify the reporting mechanism so that citizens could share information without hesitation. At the same time, he stressed responsible functioning of VDC members and proper conduct while performing their role.

Senior officers were told to share successful anti-drug practices adopted in their districts so that effective models could be replicated elsewhere in the state.

Mann announced that he would personally hold meetings with Station House Officers to review the campaign at the police-station level, saying SHOs were the key operational link between the administration and the public.

Cabinet ministers Aman Arora, Harpal Singh Cheema, Dr Balbir Singh, Harbhajan Singh ETO, Gurmeet Singh Khudian, Hardeep Singh Mundian and Barinder Goyal, Chief Secretary KAP Sinha and DGP Gaurav Yadav were among those present.

Hindusthan Samachar / GURSHARAN SINGH