The harms of the Indian drug war are particularly harsh in Punjab, the western state bordering Pakistan, as state authorities have struggled for years to deal with uncontrolled drug demand, supply, and inadequate treatment. A Parliamentary Panel Report from 2023 unveiled the reality of the drug market. They estimated there were 6,600,000 people using drugs in Punjab, with 697,000 children aged 10-17 years identified with some form of substance use disorders (SUD). Drug-related deaths in Punjab are also one of the highest in the country, a total of 266 deaths reported from April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2023. As reported by the State Assembly, nearly 6.2 lakh addicts were currently in government-run treatment centres, with around 6.12 lakh in private treatment facilities. Punjab clearly is a state in crisis.
Drug policy governance
Punjab’s drug policies have varied in their approaches in the past decade, as harms from unregulated drug markets and lack of access to proper treatment exacerbated the situation. In 2017, Army veteran Amarinder Singh won local Punjab Assembly elections, vowing to achieve a drug-free Punjab in four weeks. Despite his victory, this target was never reached. Undeterred, his government implemented mandatory drug testing for government workers, and called for the death penalty for drug sellers.
The Comprehensive Action Against Drug Abuse (CADA) was also established in 2018, which was a strategy that sought to implement a zero tolerance approach to drug use, while also having compassion for “those who have fallen prey to the evil of drugs”. In practice, this strategy deployed a three-pronged approach (Enforcement, De-Addiction (through treatment and rehabilitation), and Prevention) funded by the state to improve treatment outcomes. The CADA strategy worked at least until 2021, where it was proposed as legislation to address drug treatment and prevention programmes. However, it failed to pass then, and a further bill in 2022 – this time with community service for those caught using drugs, with the threat of incarceration if people did not complete it – failed to pass into implementation.
In the 2024 Punjab local elections, dealing with addiction and drug-related harms remained a central issue, with each party offering a drug “strategy” in election manifestos; Bhagwant Mann, who won the 2022 elections for Chief Minister of Punjab, ramped up the state’s crack down on drug trafficking. Conversations of achieving a drug-free Punjab returned to politics in 2025, as the local government continues to fund anti-narcotics agencies and police forces to crack down on drug markets.
In 2025, the Government announced a five-member Cabinet panel for monitoring the drug situation in the State, further expanding state-led initiatives against drug selling. The latest tool in their escalating tactics against drug trafficking includes “bulldozer justice”, where the government demolishes houses of supposed drug sellers identified by police forces.
Old wine in a new bottle?
There is nothing remotely new in calls for a drug-free Punjab, or cracking down on drug use or selling – these are repeated rhetorics across drug policies in the state and nationwide, often failing to achieve its lofty goals. It is high time to engage in a serious re-evaluation of the strategy or can we look for a different approach altogether.
What has dominated Punjab’s efforts at drug control for the past decade has been increasingly a ‘securitised’, enforcement-led approach. Although drug control efforts have included treatment, rehabilitation and preventive education with focus on compassion, care and circumvention, they have not transformed the punitive intent of all the past drug strategies.
However, the dismal outcomes of Punjab’s illicit drug policy are all too evident. A serious evaluation of the systemic failures is needed, as enforcement has been unable to curtail rising use and harms around problematic use and addiction, or the human rights violations at de-addiction treatment centres and jails, and unimpressive demand reduction initiatives which have not prevented soaring rates of addiction and drug-related fatalities.
Drug markets in the post-pandemic period have changed significantly, and a fresh approach to reducing harms is needed. The appearance of synthetic opioids like fentanyl adulterating in the heroin supply led to a spike in overdose deaths; the lack of an early warning drug system prevents any analysis of changing product dynamics. Drones are increasingly used by drugs sellers to send substances from Pakistan to India, with over 200 drones seized in 2024 alone – double the previous year’s results. Participation in the illegal drug economy is also expanding, with a rising number of women involved in it: an Indian Express 2023 investigation highlighted how some of the most deprived areas of Punjab saw spikes in rates of female involvement in the drug trade, particularly in areas with low numbers of legal jobs.
Punjab’s illicit drugs strategy has positioned itself partly within a criminal justice context and partly health-based, yet heavily influenced by the political desires of the incumbent government. The present drug strategy appears to be an ad-hoc arrangement that may have limited benefits. It may be argued that, because the public considers the “drug problem” a high priority, politics had to offer immediate, rather than evidence-based, strategies. Enforcement-led approaches, with bulldozing actions and police presence are a great show of strength – but its results have been lacking and deadly for those still suffering from drug-related harms.
Is decriminalisation an option for Punjab?
Over the years, decriminalisation has been sporadically proposed. In 2023, decriminalisation of small amounts, with enforced treatment and rehabilitation was suggested. It was put forward again in 2024 by Dharamvira Gandhi, a Punjabi politician who called for the removal of criminal sanctions for organic substances like opium and cannabis in Punjab. Gandhi argued that drug criminalisation exacerbated Punjab’s current crisis, and believed that going further and enabling legal industries around these organic substances could help support the economic development of the region.
The government’s plan for decriminalisation, however, is still too infant and unclear. Its realistic implementation remains questionable, and whether it would actually abolish its punitive tendencies of the past. With physical and mental abuse, as well as a lack of professionally trained staff plaguing de-addiction treatment centres, how can trust be placed in the facilities that are supposed to be helping those struggling with drug use?
There are too many opinions on what to be done, and no solution yet in sight. But something must be done, as Punjab cannot remain in this situation for much longer. Commenting on the lack of work, flight of young people and struggles with drugs, Punjabi journalist Amandeep Sandhu said: “Punjab needs healing” And rightly so: the search for a Punjab oriented towards life continues, and with it, the search for a better and more just drug policy for society.
