Operation Toofan: Kerala teams up with central agencies for anti-drug crackdown; 2,575 cases registered so far

Kerala on Tuesday unveiled a three-pronged anti-drug strategy under Operation Toofan, with State Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala announcing the initiative after a multi-agency meeting to strengthen the state's fight against narcotics. "Operation Toofan will be carried out through three parallel initiatives: Toofan Strikes, Toofan Warriors and Toofan Care," the minister said.

The first component, Toofan Strikes, focuses on the seizure of narcotics and the use of scientific and intelligence-based measures to curb drug trafficking. According to Chennithala, the Kerala Police has been spearheading raids across the state, and within the first 15 days of the operation, banned narcotic substances and prohibited tobacco products worth over ₹10 crore have been seized.

The second pillar, Toofan Warriors, is a public awareness campaign that seeks to mobilise celebrities and civil society against drug abuse. Chennithala announced that Malayalam superstar Mohanlal has agreed to be one of the campaign's faces. "Many film personalities and distinguished members of society have already joined as Toofan Warriors," he said.

The third initiative, Toofan Care, is aimed at rehabilitation and support for those affected by substance abuse, including people struggling with addiction and withdrawal symptoms.

The minister said that since the launch of Operation Toofan, 2,575 cases have been registered and 2,778 people arrested. However, questions remain over the state's effectiveness in tackling the inflow of synthetic drugs, a challenge that also dogged the previous government's Operation D-Hunt. In the last five days alone, authorities seized 1.589 kg of MDMA compared with 146.459 kg of ganja—a pattern that mirrors seizure trends under the previous government. Notably, Operation D-Hunt drew mixed reviews, with critics arguing that the emphasis on large cannabis seizures often created an impression of effective enforcement while insufficient attention was paid to proactively curbing the inflow and distribution of synthetic drugs, reflected in the comparatively lower seizures of synthetic narcotics.

Notably, the government is now set to intensify its crackdown on inter-state drug trafficking networks. Chennithala said the UDF government plans a rapid expansion of the campaign through close coordination with central enforcement agencies, including the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Customs, Coast Guard, Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Railway Protection Force (RPF). Representatives from these agencies, along with the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and senior officers from Kerala and South India, attended the strategy meeting.

"The questions before us are: How can we intercept these drugs? How do we identify their sources? What methodologies should we adopt to combat them effectively? These issues were discussed in great detail," Chennithala said. He added that intelligence gathered so far has provided a broad picture of the routes through which narcotics enter the state, and the next step is to trace these supply chains and strengthen inter-agency coordination.

The government also plans to develop a multi-dimensional, integrated anti-narcotics framework. "Kerala will develop one of the most modern and scientific systems for combating narcotics and drug abuse. The suggestions that emerged from today's meeting will be incorporated into our future strategy," the minister said.

Among the new measures announced is the specialised training of police dogs for narcotics detection. "At present, police dogs are mainly used for anti-terror operations and related duties. They will now also receive specialised training in narcotics detection," Chennithala said.