Overview

• The finance minister instructed DRI to pursue masterminds behind smuggling syndicates rather than focus on low-level operatives
• She called for holistic investigations that integrate behavioural data and intelligence to reveal deeper systemic threats
• Sitharaman identified narcotics as a foremost national danger, warning that drug gangs are infiltrating schools and small towns
• She urged tighter coordination between the DRI, state police and other agencies to turn intelligence into prompt action
• Recent seizures by the DRI include 1,382 kg of gold, 62 kg of heroin, 85 kg of cocaine, over 10,000 kg of ganja and 600 kg of synthetic drugs