Amritsar Police Seize Military RPG Launcher and 15kg Narcotics in Punjab Drone Smuggling Crackdown

AMRITSAR — Drone-assisted smuggling syndicates operating along Punjab's international frontier have turned to precision satellite tracking to guide weapons and narcotics shipments into border fields.

Amritsar Rural Police, coordinating with the Border Security Force and central agencies, rolled up multiple cross-border rings this week, seizing a military-grade rocket launcher, two handguns, and more than 15 kilograms of illicit narcotics. Seven suspects—including three juveniles—are in custody.

The operation cracked open a logistical chain that pairs unmanned aerial vehicles with commercial GPS trackers. In village Awan Lakha Singh, officers recovered 7.904 kilograms of heroin alongside an active GPS device. The locator beacon had been fixed directly to the drop bundle. It functioned as an automated beacon, allowing local ground couriers to pinpoint the payload in pitch darkness without illuminating border fields.

The mechanics are clinical. Foreign handlers dispatch drones across the international fence. The payload drops. The locator pings coordinates to ground operatives, who retrieve the shipment and push it into regional distribution corridors.

Five separate cases now stand registered under the Explosive Substances Act, the Arms Act, and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act at Gharinda, Lopoke, and Bhindi Saida police stations.

Farmland Drop Zones and Ground Couriers

A critical breakthrough centered on a methamphetamine corridor operating near the international perimeter. Investigators arrested Balkar Singh, a farmer whose agricultural land abuts the border fence, alongside Sukhjit Singh and two juveniles. Officers seized 2.3 kilograms of ICE (methamphetamine) from their possession.

According to Inspector General of Police (Border Range) Gurpreet Singh Bhullar, Balkar Singh allegedly coordinated the aerial drop directly onto his land before recruiting youths from the Ajnala area to transport the synthetic stimulants inland.

The exploitation of minors has hardened police scrutiny. Handlers insulated themselves abroad while putting local teenagers on frontline retrieval runs, shielding the masterminds from immediate exposure.

Anti-Tank Launchers and Border Seizures

The contraband pipeline carried more than narcotics. In a parallel swoop, police intercepted Gurkirpal Singh alias Gurpal and an underage associate, confiscating a 22 NETTO anti-tank missile launcher (RPG).

Counter-terror operatives are interrogating the suspects to identify the intended recipient of the heavy military hardware.

Hours later, a combined police and border patrol unit intercepted Lovepreet Singh alias Navpreet Singh near the Uttar Dhariwal border outpost. Officers confiscated two Austrian 9mm Glock pistols, two magazines, and ammunition. Two associates fled into the darkness; tracking teams have deployed across the sector to cut off their escape.

Night sweeps widened the haul. At the Fatehpur border outpost, border guards and rural police units uncovered a 5.152-kilogram parcel of opium concealed along the tractor lanes.

Senior Superintendent of Police (Amritsar Rural) Kanwalpreet Singh Chahal said forensic teams are extracting data from the five seized mobile devices and the recovered drone to reconstruct flight trajectories and signal origins. The accused adults remain in police custody under local magisterial remand, while investigators process extradition and intelligence dossiers targeting the foreign handlers coordinating the drops.