Sikkim Police strengthens anti-narcotics task force

Gangtok, Nov 5 (PTI) Sikkim Police has strengthened its Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) with the deployment of three Deputy Superintendents of Police, stepping up efforts to target drug trafficking networks, their financiers and interstate links.

    The first formal meeting of the strengthened task force was held at Police Headquarters in Gangtok on Thursday, marking the operationalisation of ANTF in line with the state's Vision Document on Narcotics Control 2026-2029 and the model structure prescribed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Sikkim Police said in a press statement.

     The meeting was chaired by DIG Tenzing Loden Lepcha, who heads the task force. DSPs Yash Gurung, Kunal Mohra and Dipendra Adhikari were formally inducted into the unit and assigned specialised responsibilities involving narcotics intelligence, investigations, financial probes and technical analysis.

    Lepcha stressed that the police response must go beyond arrests and seizures to identify and dismantle entire drug trafficking networks, including suppliers, financiers and distributors, the statement said.

    The task force will adopt an intelligence-led approach, focusing on financial investigations, technological inputs and coordination with district police and central enforcement agencies.

    The ANTF also unveiled its logo carrying the motto "Detect, Disrupt, Dismantle". A dedicated office for the unit is proposed to be set up in the Children Park area of Gangtok.

    Appealing for public cooperation, Sikkim Police urged citizens to report drug-related activities through the MANAS National Narcotics Helpline 1933.

    The police said its campaign would combine strict enforcement against traffickers with awareness, prevention, counselling and rehabilitation initiatives to protect the state's youth.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)