Amritsar, November 6: Counter Intelligence (CI) Amritsar has busted a cross-border narcotics smuggling network, apprehending four accused — including one juvenile — and recovering 36 kilograms of heroin, Punjab Police announced on Friday. Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav shared the announcement on the police's official channels.

Source: Punjab Police (@punjabpoliceind)

According to the police announcement, preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused were allegedly acting on the instructions of a foreign-based handler. Police said the accused allegedly received heroin consignments near the India-Pakistan border in the Lopoke area of Amritsar district and supplied them onward to other parties. These are police allegations at the investigation stage; the accused have not been tried in court.

Source: DGP Punjab (@dgp_punjabpolice)

FIR at SSOC Amritsar, probe on to map the full network

An FIR has been registered at Police Station State Special Operation Cell (SSOC), Amritsar, police said. Further investigation is underway to uncover the complete network and its backward and forward linkages — who sent the consignments, who was to receive them inside Punjab, and how the supply chain was financed and moved.

Source: Punjab Police (@punjabpoliceind)

Police did not name the apprehended accused in Friday's announcement. One of the four is a juvenile, and Awaaz Punjab does not identify minors in news reports.

Source: DGP Punjab (@dgp_punjabpolice)

The CI Amritsar seizure comes a day after a separate Amritsar Rural Police operation recovered 34 kg of heroin, two Uzi sub-machine guns, two hand grenades and five pistols, with 16 people arrested across Gharinda, Lopoke, Beas, Mehta and Chatiwind. Read the earlier Amritsar Rural Police bust

Punjab Police said it remains committed to combating drug trafficking and dismantling organised narcotics networks. What happens next: the four accused will be produced and questioned as the SSOC investigation works to establish the network's complete forward and backward linkages, and police have said further arrests and recoveries are possible as the probe progresses.