Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Sep 22: Union Home Minister Amit Shah will on Tuesday inaugurate the third National Conference of Heads of Anti-Narcotics Task Forces (ANTFs) of States and Union Territories in New Delhi, with the two-day conference focusing on the implementation of the Vision Document on Narcotics Control (2026-2029) and coordinated efforts to combat drug trafficking and substance abuse.
The conference, being organised under the theme “United Resolve, Shared Responsibility”, will bring together heads of ANTFs from all 36 States and Union Territories, along with representatives of central government departments and other stakeholders. The deliberations will review progress on targets assigned to State and UT ANTFs under the recently released Vision Document and examine strategies to strengthen supply reduction, demand reduction and harm reduction measures.
The Vision Document on Narcotics Control (2026-2029), released on June 26, lays down a three-year roadmap with time-bound targets for central ministries, departments, agencies and State and UT governments. Its four key focus areas are enforcement, intelligence and operations; control of precursors and synthetic drugs; demand and harm reduction; and capacity building and coordination. The document also seeks to strengthen the institutional capacity of State ANTFs, forensic laboratories and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), while improving inter-agency coordination through the Narco-Coordination Centre (NCORD) mechanism.
Eight technical sessions have been scheduled during the conference. The discussions will cover institutional mechanisms under the Vision Document, dismantling drug-trafficking networks and cartels, demand reduction, prevention and rehabilitation, improving enforcement effectiveness, precursor and synthetic drugs and clandestine laboratories, destruction of illicit cultivation and promotion of alternative crops, as well as investigations involving the darknet and cryptocurrencies.
The conference is expected to provide a platform for States, Union Territories, central departments and enforcement agencies to work towards a coordinated strategy against the drug trade over the next three years. The deliberations will focus on generating actionable measures to strengthen drug-law enforcement and improve coordination among agencies.
Shah will also release television commercials aimed at creating awareness about the dangers of drug abuse and lay the foundation stones for new NCB Zone complexes in Lucknow and Dehradun. The revamped NCB website will also be launched during the event. The best-performing ANTF among the States and Union Territories will be felicitated.
The government has said it is working in “mission mode” to protect the country's youth from the adverse effects of drug abuse, linking the campaign with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of a “Viksit Bharat” by 2047. The Centre has emphasised a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach to tackling narcotics, with the NCB and State and UT ANTFs expected to develop a future-ready mechanism to combat drug abuse and advance the objective of a “Drug-Free India”.
The conference follows the second National Conference of ANTF Heads held in New Delhi in September 2025, which also brought together representatives from all 36 States and Union Territories under the same theme of “United Resolve, Shared Responsibility”.