Knowledge Nugget | From Telegram Drug Networks to Nitazenes: What the NCB Annual Report 2025 reveals

In 2018, UPSC asked a GS-III question on the linkages between drug trafficking and other illicit activities. Drug trafficking has emerged as one of the biggest menaces of our time, and the government, through various initiatives, is creating awareness among the youth against drug abuse. In today’s knowledge nugget, let’s take a look at the key highlights of the NCB Annual Report 2025.

Recently, Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah released the ‘Vision Document on Drug Control (2026-2029)’ and the ‘NCB Annual Report-2025.’ Let’s know the key highlights of the annual report, as well as the concepts of the Death (Golden) Crescent and the Death (Golden) Triangle.

Key Highlights of NCB Annual Report-2025

1. Highest narcotics-related arrests in 5 years: India also saw a significant rise in narcotics-related enforcement in 2025, with the number of people arrested in anti-drug operations increasing sharply, according to the report.

— The report said 1,83,675 people were arrested in 2025, up from 1,22,224 in 2024. This was the highest figure recorded during the five years from 2021 to 2025. It also said that 810 detention orders were issued in 2025, a steep rise from 531 in 2024.

2. Encrypted Apps major channels for drug trafficking: Encrypted messaging platforms such as Telegram, WhatsApp and Signal have become major channels for drug trafficking worldwide, including in India. Of these three, Telegram has emerged as a key platform for drug-related advertising, according to the Narcotics Control Bureau’s Annual Report 2025 released Friday.

3. Myanmar leading source of illicit opium: The report by the apex drug law enforcement agency also flagged a trafficking corridor from Myanmar into India’s Northeast as a major security concern, warning that the drug trade in the region is linked to arms smuggling and financing of terror groups.

— “Myanmar has now overtaken Afghanistan as the leading source of illicit opium,” the report said, “with the change driven by the after-effects of the Taliban’s ban on poppy cultivation and the continued expansion of cultivation in Myanmar amid conflict and economic breakdown.”

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4. Actions against Illicit cultivation: Enforcement agencies also reported the major action against illicit cultivation. “The area under poppy cultivation destroyed rose dramatically to 42,282 acres in 2025, nearly double the 22,512 acres eradicated in 2024. (Area under) cannabis cultivation destroyed also increased, reaching 38,193 acres, up from 34,018 acres a year earlier,” the report said.

— According to the report, amphetamine-type stimulants accounted for nearly half of all synthetic drug seizures globally in 2023, with methamphetamine and amphetamine remaining the dominant substances.

— The report also said methamphetamine production remained concentrated in hubs including Mexico, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Czechia, and the Netherlands, while trafficking patterns were expanding across Europe, Africa, and the Near and Middle East.

5. Challenge of Porous border: “The porous border (between India and Myanmar) and Free Movement Regime facilitate trafficking, exacerbate local addiction, and fund insurgent groups,” the report said.

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6. Changing global narcotics landscape: The report also pointed out that India is facing mounting pressure from a rapidly changing global narcotics landscape, marked by the rise of ultra-potent synthetic opioids and a record cocaine output.

7. Two emerging threats: The report flagged two emerging threats that require urgent attention: the spread of nitazenes, a class of synthetic opioids said to be 500 times more potent than heroin, and the increasing link between drug trafficking and organised violence across transit economies.

Amit Shah unveils Vision Document on Drug Control 2026-2029

The Roadmap 3-Word Strategy The Disposal Drive India's Fault Line Cutting Demand

VISION DOCUMENT 2026-29

A four-pillar roadmap to Nasha Mukt Bharat

Prepared to achieve PM Modi's Nasha Mukt Bharat target on the way to Viksit Bharat 2047, the roadmap will be reviewed after one year and pursued with renewed intensity for the final two years.

1

Enforcement, Intelligence & Operations

Targeted, intelligence-led action to identify and destroy the entire trafficking network.

2

Precursor & Synthetic Drug Control

A strategy to stop drugs at the production stage itself.

3

Demand & Harm Reduction

Driven through society, education and rehabilitation programmes.

4

Capacity Building, Coordination & Monitoring

Making the system capable, coordinated, accountable and modern.

THE OPERATIONAL DOCTRINE

Detect, Disrupt, Destroy

The entire roadmap rests on three words — used to dismantle cartels operating at every level, from those bringing drugs into the country to those distributing them to end users.

◎

Detect

HUMINT, technical intelligence and community policing in border and sensitive districts, plus monitoring of the dark web, hawala and crypto transactions.

⚡

Disrupt

Hit sources, transit routes, financing and leadership; destroy illegal crops and identify clandestine labs.

✕

Destroy

Finish networks so they cannot rise again, while de-addiction and rehabilitation cut demand on the other side.

"Under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi, we will strike the entire drug trade ecosystem so decisively over the next three years that it will not be able to recover for decades."

— Amit Shah, Union Home Minister, June 26, 2026

₹6,000 cr

Worth of narcotics targeted for destruction

2,09,500 kg

Weight of seized drugs to be disposed

ONLINE DRUGS DISPOSAL FORTNIGHT

A two-week nationwide destruction campaign

Launched alongside the Vision Document, the fortnight campaign aims to clear seized narcotics stockpiles. Shah called destroying ₹6,000 crore worth of drugs in a single day "a significant achievement."

GEOGRAPHY OF RISK

Caught between the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent

Shah described India as geographically situated between the "Death Triangle" and "Death Crescent" — the two global trafficking corridors long known as the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent — making the country a transit zone for narcotics.

◆

Drone-based drops & sea cargo

Traffickers increasingly use aerial drops and containerized shipping to move consignments.

◆

Darknet & crypto payments

Order-to-delivery and parcel-shipment models powered by anonymised networks and digital payments.

◆

Narco-terror financing

Drug trafficking has evolved into an ecosystem linked to organised crime and cross-border terror funding.

DEMAND-SIDE MEASURES

A sympathetic approach toward the affected youth

Shah stressed a ruthless approach to traffickers but compassion for drug victims, saying it is goodwill that can "reconnect these children with a normal life."

✓

Drug-free zones

Designated zones with public awareness campaigns involving parents, teachers and youth organisations.

✓

Drug-Free Campus framework

School and higher education departments to adopt the framework, building awareness among parents and teachers.

✓

Nodal officers per department

Every state to appoint nodal officers for treatment, rehabilitation and awareness programmes.

Sources: PIB Delhi (June 26, 2026) · Ministry of Home Affairs · NCB Annual Report 2025

What are the key highlights of World Drug Report 2025?

1. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched the World Drug Report, which provides a scientific and impartial overview of drug trends and patterns around the world.

2. According to the report titled “Global instability compounding social, economic and security costs of the world drug problem”, 316 million people used a drug (excluding alcohol and tobacco) in 2023, or six per cent of the population aged between 15 and 64, compared to 5.2 per cent of the population in 2013.

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3. Cannabis was the most widely used drug with 244 million users, followed by opioids (61 million), amphetamines (30.7 million), cocaine (25 million), and “ecstasy” (21 million). The report warns that the new groups of vulnerable people fleeing hardship, instability and conflict could cause these numbers to increase further.

4. The report also pointed to the cost of failing to tackle drug use disorders – nearly half a million deaths and 28 million healthy years of life lost due to disability and premature deaths (DALY) in 2021. Just one in 12 people with drug use disorders were estimated to have received any form of drug treatment in 2023.

5. Region-specific, the report highlighted that the gender gap in cannabis use in Asia is the largest globally; 90 in every 100 people who used cannabis in the past year were men. Also, Asia accounts for the largest number of people who inject drugs worldwide (5.2 million in 2022) and, within that group, of those living with HIV (615,000) and hepatitis C (2.8 million).

What are Death (Golden) Crescent and Death (Golden) Triangle?

1. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), two significant regions of drug production and drug trafficking are the “Golden Crescent” and “Golden Triangle”.

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2. Golden Crescent includes illicit opium production areas in Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan; and the “Golden Triangle” covers Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos.

3. “India has been seen as sandwiched between the Death (Golden) Crescent and Death (Golden) Triangle. The country is being flooded with drugs, especially heroin and methamphetamine, from these two regions. Nearly 90 per cent of the world’s demand for these drugs is being met from these two regions. India is both a big market and a transit route for other countries,” wrote Rakesh Asthana.

4. In 2023, Union Home Minister while speaking at conference on ‘Drugs Smuggling and National Security’ said that “Earlier the main area of drug smuggling was called ‘Golden Triangle’ and ‘Golden Crescent’, but the government of India has proposed internationally that it should be named as ‘Death Triangle’ and ‘Death Crescent’. This approach shows the direction and intensity of our fight against drugs.

BEYOND THE NUGGET: Major drug-busting operations

1. Operation Crystal Fortress: The operation drew its name from “Crystal”, referring to methamphetamine, and “fortress”, denoting the secured area where it was hidden, similar to a fort. Methamphetamine is also known as the “Ice” drug because of its white, crystal-like appearance and its high demand at rave parties.

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2. Operation WeedOut: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) launched a pan India operation under the codename “Weedout” to dismantle a syndicate involved in smuggling of hydroponic weed into India. DRI is the premier intelligence and enforcement agency, working under the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs, Ministry of Finance. It is tasked with detecting and curbing smuggling of contraband, including drug trafficking and illicit international trade.

3. Operation Samudragupt: Launched in January 2022, Op Samudragupt is a joint initiative by the Indian Navy and the NCB to combat drug trafficking in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

4. Operation NARCOS: In June 2022, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) launched a special drive aimed at curbing the smuggling of drugs on trains. RPF intensified its checks in trains and identified black spots across the country in coordination with NCB to target drug peddlers involved in this illegal trade.

Post Read Question

Consider the following countries:

1. Afghanistan

2. Iran

3. Pakistan

Which of the following countries forms part of the Death (Golden) triangle?

(a) 1, 2, and 3

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1 and 2 only

(d) None

Answer

(d)

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(Sources: 747 foreign nationals held in India in drug cases, most from Nepal: Report, Telegram key platform for drug ads, Myanmar route a concern: NCB, , unodc.org)

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