​Battling drug abuse: On Kerala’s Operation Toofan

For a few years now, a growing section of Kerala’s youth has been consumed by a festering addiction to narcotic drugs and contraband/psychotropic substances. The signs of the State teetering towards substance abuse were apparent in the wake of the liquor ban a decade ago. But it grew to gargantuan proportions with synthetic drug cartels using digital technologies and social media to outpace law enforcement. While the COVID-19-stricken years of 2020-21 saw a drop in NDPS cases registered in the State, cases surged to 26,619 in 2022 from 5,695 in 2021. The number rose to 36,314 in 2025, alongside large-scale seizures of commercial quantities of contraband. Commercial capital Ernakulam city accounted for a substantial number. Despite efforts by multiple agencies, success has been limited. The UDF government sought to streamline the anti-drug enforcement drive by launching Operation Toofan in June, with the State police joining hands with the police forces in the southern States, central agencies, and State education, health and excise departments.