Nawabzada Shazain Bugti, Minister for Narcotics Control, has formed vigilance squads inside the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) to target drug sales around educational institutions, community centers, and public transit hubs in metropolitan areas.
The teams, which will operate in cities like Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi, would be dedicated to serving the people.
The Minister was updated on the force’s performance during his visit to ANF headquarters, and ANF Chief of Staff, Brig Riffat Ali Khan, provided a complete analysis of ANF’s performance for the year 2022.Â
The Minister was notified that the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) seized 227.2 metric tonnes of drugs in 2022. Drug traffickers utilize a variety of techniques to transport narcotics, but land-based seizures reached 111.328 metric tonnes, maritime seizures were 3.312 metric tons, and airport interceptions totaled 428 kilos. The total amount of narcotics seized at mailing offices was 1.147 metric tons.
The Minister was also briefed that 30 foreign intelligence operations were carried out with the cooperation of international partners. The ANF’s airport activities resulted in 324 arrests to disrupt drug trafficking efforts to other countries, and 595 drug traffickers were sentenced in different courts, bringing the conviction percentage to an astonishing 87%.
