Relevance for UPSC: GS-III (Internal Security, Agriculture, Governance)
Source: The Hindu; Ministry of Finance (CBN data); Ministry of Home Affairs

Context

Despite a long-standing licensed opium cultivation system, India is witnessing a resurgence of illicit opium production and trafficking, especially in parts of Madhya Pradesh (Neemuch, Mandsaur), Rajasthan (Chittorgarh, Pratapgarh) and adjoining regions of Maharashtra. This revival exposes serious gaps in narcotics enforcement, agricultural policy, and Centre–State coordination.

Nature of the Problem

1. Diversion from Licensed Cultivation

India is one of the few countries permitted to grow opium poppy legally for pharmaceutical use. However:

• Farmers over-tap poppy capsules beyond permitted levels.
• Licit produce is mixed with illicit opium and sold through illegal channels.
• Strict rejection norms, delayed procurement and low official prices make legal cultivation economically unattractive.

This is particularly evident in Madhya Pradesh, India’s largest licensed opium-growing State.

2. Expansion of the Narcotics Network

• Poppy husk and opium move through inter-State routes, feeding markets in western and northern India.
• These networks increasingly intersect with synthetic drugs, expanding the narcotics ecosystem beyond traditional opium.
• Organised crime groups exploit porous rural enforcement.

3. Enforcement & Governance Gaps

• Multiple agencies operate—Central Bureau of Narcotics, Narcotics Control Bureau, State Police—often with poor intelligence sharing.
• Limited use of satellite imagery, crop analytics and digital tracking.
• Under the NDPS Act, 1985, high evidentiary thresholds make convictions against large syndicates difficult.

4. Federal Dimension

• Law and order is a State subject, while narcotics control involves Central agencies.
• Weak cooperative federalism undermines sustained enforcement.

Way Forward

• Reform licit opium procurement: fair pricing, timely payments, transparent norms.
• Deploy technology-based crop monitoring (satellites, geotagging).
• Strengthen intelligence-led, inter-State policing.
• Combine enforcement with de-addiction, awareness and rural livelihood support.
• Improve Centre–State coordination through joint task forces.

India’s opium challenge is not just a crime issue, but a test of governance, farmer security and cooperative federalism.

Q. “Examine the challenges of narcotics control in India with reference to illicit opium cultivation and Centre–State coordination.”