Operation Toofan, the State government’s latest anti-narcotic drive, has gained early momentum in the district, with the police in both City and Rural limits intensifying coordinated action against drug traffickers.

Within the Kochi City limits, the police recorded 129 cases and arrested 145 accused under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act in a week since the operation was launched on June 1. The police seized 8.867 kg of suspected ganja and 443.86 gm of MDMA as part of the drive. Narcotic substances in commercial quantity were seized in one case, while three cases pertain to confiscation of drugs in intermediate quantity. Eighty cases involving small quantity and 45 cases of drug consumption were also registered in the initial week.

The biggest seizure by the City police so far under Operation Toofan pertains to the recovery of 437.28 gm of suspected MDMA from three youths at an apartment at Kollamkudimugal in Thrikkakara. The large volume of the suspected synthetic drug was seized amid a series of raids conducted at 90 locations within the City police limits on June 3. Besides intensified action by the District Anti-Narcotics Special Action Force (DANSAF), the City police have deployed a special squad for surveillance of suspected drug dealers and narcotic hotspots, officials said.

The Ernakulam Rural police, meanwhile, stepped up anti-narcotic operations by launching large-scale raids across their limits with a focus on the Perumbavoor region. As many as 11 migrant labourers were arrested on charges of drug peddling and consumption from Perumbavoor in a day-and-night raid on Sunday. The raids were conducted by a ‘special Toofan squad’ formed by District Police Chief (Ernakulam Rural) K.S. Sudarshan and led by Perumbavoor Additional SP Hardik Meena. Specially trained dog squads were also part of the searches, police said.

Earlier on Saturday night, the Rural police arrested four men from Murshidabad in West Bengal while allegedly smuggling 34 kg of suspected ganja. On Thursday, the police arrested two youths from Assam with six bottles of suspected heroin. The police zeroed in on the duo after a video of them injecting suspected drugs using syringes in a public place in Perumbavoor went viral.