Peshawar    -   Newly posted Deputy Inspector General (DIG) for the Mardan region Muhammad Ali Gandapur said that 50kg hashish and other drugs were seized in a single day in a special anti-narcotics operation in the Mardan region on Saturday.

Speaking to The Nation after his recent posting, Gandapur said that besides other crimes, the elimination of drugs is the focus of the law-enforcement machinery. The Mardan region comprises the districts of Mardan, Swabi, Charsadda, Mohmand and Nowshera districts, which make up a huge area in terms of policing.   

“Newly formed Narcotics Eradication Teams (NETs) on the directives of the IGP detained 91 drug traffickers, recovered 50kg hashish, 11.7kg ice, 2.8kg heroin, and 10 litres of alcohol during the last 24 hours,” he added.

In other operations, he added, police detained 27 accused and seized 7 SMGs, 12 rifles, 36 handguns, and 490 cartridges from them. The RPO said that to deter crimes, snap-checking, search operations, and security audits of 161 critical government facilities were all carried out at 35 locations throughout the region.

The RPO added that the districts in the Mardan region would continue to experience a relentless police onslaught on criminals, drug dealers, and other anti-social groups.

Gandapur has already once served as RPO of the Mardan region. Before posting for the second time in the Mardan region, Gandapur served as the head of the Special Branch and also as Deputy Director General in the Intelligence Bureau. He also served as the Capital City Police Officer in Peshawar a few years ago. During his posting in Peshawar, the jurisdictions of more than 30 police stations had been realigned for better policing and two new police stations and a new circle had also been set up in the provincial capital in those days.