Countering the Unholy Alliance of Pakistan Sponsored Narco-Terrorism

Summary

Pakistan-sponsored narco-terrorism along India’s western borders is a serious security concern. Technological advancements, particularly the use of Chinese drones, have enabled the smuggling of drugs along with small arms, posing a persistent challenge that Indian security forces continue to counter effectively.

In the modern day non-kinetic warfare, Narco-terrorism has taken a central place. It has not been limited to drug trafficking and includes networks to finance terrorism and destabilise state security structures. The network generates an ecosystem of terrorism, organised crime, money laundering, human trafficking, cross-border smuggling, exploiting the foundation of any nation and destroying it piece by piece.

It very well fits in the frame of hybrid warfare as it undermines the national security. India is also a victim of narco-terrorism sponsored through the regions of the golden crescent and golden triangle. The golden crescent forms an unholy alliance comprising Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, which are the world’s largest opium-producing regions. Pakistan-based narco-terrorism is a nexus between anti-India terror organisations and crime syndicates, which fund acts of terrorism, weaken society, and destabilise the internal security of India.

Owing to the political instability of Afghanistan, Pakistan-based crime syndicates are exploiting the situation and bulking up their heroin reserves, which are transferred to India, especially through the regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Rajasthan, often through the use of drones – many of which are usually intercepted, but a few of it makes through to drop the packages of drugs and assault rifles across the border. The Indian security forces, especially the Border Security Force (BSF) have intercepted Chinese-made DJI Mavic 3 classic drones carrying pistols and drugs near the Punjab border.

There are technological advancements in these delivery drones as they are made ‘failsafe drones’ capable of evading the anti-drone radars and delivering the packages safely. If under threat, they have the ability to return to their bases in Pakistan. The narco-terrorism is considered as a socio political strategy aimed at vulnerable population especially youths which weakens societal resilience and creates instability while harbouring the terror and crime syndicates working in the country. In 2026, the Times of India reported, that Punjab police dismantled the drug syndicate linked to Pakistani based handers with huge quantities of Methamphatine and heroin. The vast porous desert terrain of Rajasthan is also becoming the hot zone of drug trafficking where bypassing the traditional human made routes due to the strict surveillance of BSF, the Pakistani handlers are using GPS enabled Quadcopters to delivers drugs in the Sri Ganganagar and Bikaner sectors of Rajasthan, adjoining Pakistan.

India’s Response

India’s does not consider narco-terrorism merely as a criminal issue, rather calls it a tool of hybrid warfare employed by its adversary (here Pakistan). The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) along with the state police forces and BSF are working in sync to dismantle this infrastructure by border management, intelligence coordination, anti-drone technology, and counter-narcotics operations.

Recently Operation RAGEPILL was conducted. The operation was a multi-agency operation headed by the NCB in which 227 kg of Captagon (a Psychotropic Substance) was seized worth 182 crores of Indian currency. Investigations reveal that the international drug trafficking system is working across the globe with high tech digital communication. Similarly, in Jammu and Kashmir, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) reports that National Investigation Agency (NIA) is stripping terror finance channels by targeting the sleeper networks, Over Ground Workers (OGW) and illegal funding routes. In May 2025 Operation keller was launched – it was a counter -terrorism joint operation by Indian Army, CRPF and the J&K Police. During the operation the security forces neutralised Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militants and recovered large quantities of ammunition. This was an effort to counter the financing network of these groups sourced from drug financing.

Such operations by the Indian security agencies are not only about the seizures but shows India’s preemtiveness in demolishing the syndicates from the roots as it considers it as a wider narrative of hybrid warfare since the money made through it are ultimately used in terror financing of the extremist groups.

Ultimately, Pakistan sponsored narco-terrorism are exploiting the fault lines within India like the lack of education, obliviousness of youth and unemployment also demonstrates how non-state actors, crime syndicates and hostile state-backed networks are leveraging on narcotics trafficking as a means of asymmetric warfare. India’s geographic location between the golden crescent and golden triangle will see the future challenges of narco-terrorism, while India’s evolving countermeasures highlight the growing importance of technological adaptation and integrated security responses in addressing the future threats.

Disclaimer: Views expressed are of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Statecraft Institute.