📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Schüler1000
Defence
Drone‑borne Weapon Smuggling from Pakistan Turns Punjab Into Transit Hub
✍️ Amar Ujala · Jalandhar
🗓 23 Oct 2026, 09:16 AM
👁 19
Authorities say weapons are being flown across the Pakistan border by drones and routed through Punjab to other Indian states, posing a serious security risk.
Security agencies have identified a new smuggling route that uses low‑altitude drones to ferry weapons from Pakistan into India. The contraband is first received in Punjab, where local suppliers allegedly redistribute it to other states, creating a covert supply chain that bypasses traditional checkpoints.
Investigators say the operation exploits the porous border areas of Punjab, using unmanned aerial vehicles that are difficult to detect with conventional radar. The weapons are reportedly handed over to local middlemen who have established networks across the region, facilitating rapid movement to demand centres in northern and central India.
The Ministry of Defence has classified the drone‑based trafficking as a growing threat to national security and has urged state police to intensify surveillance along the border. Officials are also coordinating with intelligence services to trace the financial and logistical links that support the illicit trade.
While the exact volume of smuggled arms remains unconfirmed, the discovery has prompted calls for tighter aerial monitoring and the deployment of counter‑UAV technology along vulnerable stretches of the frontier.
Investigators say the operation exploits the porous border areas of Punjab, using unmanned aerial vehicles that are difficult to detect with conventional radar. The weapons are reportedly handed over to local middlemen who have established networks across the region, facilitating rapid movement to demand centres in northern and central India.
The Ministry of Defence has classified the drone‑based trafficking as a growing threat to national security and has urged state police to intensify surveillance along the border. Officials are also coordinating with intelligence services to trace the financial and logistical links that support the illicit trade.
While the exact volume of smuggled arms remains unconfirmed, the discovery has prompted calls for tighter aerial monitoring and the deployment of counter‑UAV technology along vulnerable stretches of the frontier.