The Tamil Nadu government has allocated Rs. 264.14 crore to further strengthen the Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) in order to curb sales.
Accordingly, 65 special ANTF police stations are to be set up across the state. A total of 1,625 police posts are being created for this purpose. These include 65 inspectors, 260 sub-inspectors, and other police posts.
These 65 police stations will operate in 37 districts and 28 cities. Along with areas such as Chennai, Avadi, and Tambaram, cities including Salem, Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Tiruchirappalli, Madurai, and Tirunelveli are also included.
At the ANTF headquarters, 10 divisions are being set up, including the Cyber Lab, Crime Records Bureau, Field Intelligence Unit, Special Operation & Investigation Unit, 24-hour Control Room, IT Support, and Legal Unit.
Through the Cyber Lab, modern technologies such as digital forensics, mobile phone data analysis, cryptocurrency and blockchain analysis, social media monitoring, and OSINT will be used.
Furthermore, ANTF will investigate the financial transactions of those involved in drug offenses and identify and freeze their movable and immovable assets.
A 24x7 control room has been set up at the ANTF headquarters, and information from the public will be received through the Toll-Free number 10581, the 9498410581 WhatsApp number, and the Drug Free Tamil Nadu App. Modern equipment including vehicles, CCTV cameras, body-worn cameras, and walkie-talkies will also be provided to 65 ANTF police stations. The government order has directed that, in anti-drug enforcement efforts, various departments such as Health, School Education, Higher Education, Youth Welfare, and Rural Development be coordinated and work together with the police.
ANTF has been expanded to carry out coordinated action across multiple fronts in drug prevention, including intelligence, cyber technology, financial investigation, asset seizure, and rehabilitation.