Overview

Kerala’s Minister for Home, Vigilance and Coir, Ramesh Chennithala, addressed a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah urging the creation of a time‑bound interstate operational protocol under the Narco‑Coordination Centre (NCORD) to accelerate cooperation against narcotics trafficking.

Operation Toofan Performance

Launched on 2 June 2026, the statewide anti‑narcotics mission Operation Toofan logged 13,357 cases and effected 14,409 arrests within 140 days. The operation seized more than 27 kg of drugs and 1,796 kg of illicit substances.

Cross‑State Seizure Illustrations

  • A 97 g drug seizure at Manjeri led Malappuram Police to a storage point in Coimbatore, where ≈13 kg of illicit substance destined for Kerala was recovered. The investigation subsequently traversed Delhi, Noida, Kolkata, Bihar and Chennai.
  • A 609 g seizure at Angamaly prompted Ernakulam Rural Police to trace a key supplier in Nagaon, Assam, resulting in arrests in Delhi and Bengaluru linked to the same network.

These examples underscore the current reliance on ad‑hoc, case‑by‑case coordination, which the Minister argues should be replaced by rapid, pre‑defined mechanisms.

Four Proposals for Strengthened National Coordination

1. Time‑Bound Interstate Operational Protocol (NCORD) – Establish round‑the‑clock nodal officers in every State and Union Territory to provide immediate assistance for arrests, transit remand, evidence preservation and transfer.

2. Real‑Time Operational Intelligence Sharing – Enhance data exchange among State Anti‑Narcotics Task Forces and other drug‑law enforcement agencies on trafficking routes, repeat offenders, courier networks, source points, financial links and emerging substances, building on the existing NCORD architecture and the National Integrated Database on Arrested Narco‑Offenders (NIDAAN).

3. Coordinated Financial‑Trail Mechanism – Structure joint action among State Police, the Narcotics Control Bureau, Enforcement Directorate, FIU‑IND and other competent agencies in major NDPS cases to trace hawala channels, mule bank accounts, digital‑payment trails and virtual assets, thereby targeting financiers and organisers as well as carriers.

4. Legal, Procedural and Enforcement Review – Convene a structured consultation with States, enforcement agencies, forensic experts, prosecutors and legal scholars to address challenges such as split consignments below commercial‑quantity thresholds, forensic delays, prolonged proceedings on proceeds of trafficking, and the rise of synthetic and new psychoactive substances. The letter notes that many issues may be resolved through rule changes, procedural enhancements or increased forensic capacity rather than legislative amendments.

Proposed Home Ministers’ Conference

Chennithala requested that the Union Government convene a conference of Home Ministers from all States and Union Territories focused on interstate narcotics trafficking and the implementation of the Vision Document on Drug Control (2026‑2029) released by Amit Shah at the 10th Apex‑Level NCORD meeting. Kerala offered Thiruvananthapuram as the venue and pledged to present its Operation Toofan experience, aiming to develop common protocols, share operational lessons and identify gaps requiring coordinated national action.

Closing Statement

The Minister emphasized that combating drugs is essential for the future of youth and must transcend political differences, reaffirming Kerala’s readiness to collaborate with the Union Government, the NCB and all States and Union Territories to dismantle narcotics networks “from the source to the kingpin.”