Explain how narco-terrorism has emerged as a serious threat across the country. Suggest suitable measures to counter narco-terrorism.
Approach · directive: “explain / suggest”
What it asks · Show how drug trafficking funds and fuels terrorism across India's regions, then suggest security, financial and social countermeasures.
The question has 2 parts — answer each
- Explain how narco-terrorism has emerged as a serious threat across the country: regions, routes and funding links
- Suggest suitable measures to counter narco-terrorism: interdiction, investigation, finance and demand-side
Open with · Narco-terrorism is the use of drug trade proceeds to finance terror and insurgency — India sits between the Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle.
Cover
- Punjab and J&K: heroin and arms pushed from across the border, increasingly by drones; proceeds fund militancy.
- North-East: synthetic drugs and heroin via Myanmar feed insurgent groups and organised crime.
- Maritime routes: large seizures on the western coast, such as the Mundra port heroin haul (2021), show sea-borne trafficking.
- Newer channels: dark-web sales, cryptocurrency payments and hawala make trails harder to follow.
- Measures: NCORD coordination, NIA powers under NDPS, anti-drone systems, coastal and border surveillance, and port container scanning.
- Follow the money: financial intelligence, asset seizure, and international cooperation (UNODC, BIMSTEC, bilateral pacts).
- Demand side: Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, de-addiction and rehabilitation, school and community awareness.
Close with · Treat narco-terror as one ecosystem — supply, money and demand — and hit all three together with coordinated agencies.
Add value (verified)
- MHA reported record narcotics seizures in 2024 as part of its push against the narco-terror ecosystem. PIB — Regional conference on ‘Drug Trafficking and National Security’ (MHA) ↗“Narcotics worth Rs. 16,914 crore were seized in 2024, the highest recorded since independence”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2024, GS Paper III — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 218 words (UPSC limit 150) · Minimalist IAS
Narco-terrorism is the use of drug-trade proceeds to finance terror and insurgency; India's position between the Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle makes it both a transit corridor and a market.
How the threat has spread
- Punjab and J&K: heroin and arms pushed across the border, increasingly by drones; proceeds and addiction feed militancy and gangs.
- North-East: heroin and synthetic drugs via Myanmar finance insurgent groups and organised crime.
- Maritime routes: large hauls on the western coast, such as the Mundra port heroin seizure (2021), show sea-borne trafficking by transnational cartels.
- New channels: dark-web sales, cryptocurrency payments and hawala obscure money trails; narcotics worth ₹16,914 crore were seized in 2024, the highest ever.
Measures to counter it
- Interdiction: anti-drone systems and fencing on the border, coastal surveillance and port container scanning, with NCORD coordinating central and State agencies.
- Investigation: NIA's powers to probe terror-linked drug cases, dedicated anti-narcotics task forces in States, and forensic tracing of drone drops.
- Follow the money: financial intelligence, attachment of assets under the NDPS Act and PMLA, and cooperation through UNODC, BIMSTEC and bilateral pacts.
- Demand side: Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan, de-addiction and rehabilitation centres, and school and community awareness.
Treating narco-terror as one ecosystem — supply, money and demand — and striking all three through coordinated agencies is the only durable answer.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.