Operation Toofan: Over 12,000 Arrested as Keralam Intensifies Drug Crackdown

As many as 12,111 people have been arrested and 11,241 cases registered so far under Operation Toofan, Keralam Police’s statewide anti-drug campaign, officials said.

According to a police statement, 198 people were arrested in 188 cases on Saturday as part of the continuing crackdown. The operation, launched in June after the UDF government came to power, has resulted in the seizure of 24,010.692 grams of MDMA, 1,520.724 kg of ganja, 541.547 grams of heroin and 708.819 grams of brown sugar.

Of the cases registered on Saturday, 72 involved possession of small quantities of narcotic substances, six involved medium quantities and two involved commercial quantities. Police also registered 108 cases under the NDPS Act and 189 under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act.

The latest seizures included 55.554 grams of MDMA, 26.541 kg of ganja, 11 grams of heroin and one gram of brown sugar.

Operation Toofan has combined enforcement with prevention and rehabilitation measures. Police conducted 27 awareness classes across the state on Saturday, taking the total to 10,004 awareness classes. Another 804 counselling sessions have been held, while school and college protection groups have conducted 6,945 awareness programmes.

The campaign is also being expanded to tackle drug trafficking networks. The government has formed a Toofan Anti-Narcotic Investigation Team with units in Ernakulam, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram to investigate interstate drug-trafficking networks.

Meanwhile, Operation Toofan 2.0 is scheduled to begin on September 28, with greater involvement of local self-government institutions and communities. Ward-level Toofan committees are planned across 1,034 wards, along with special village-level meetings and participation from organisations and community groups.

The second phase is intended to take the anti-drug campaign beyond enforcement and strengthen community-level prevention and public participation.