Within a fortnight of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann calling for closer cooperation between the state government and the Indian Army on border security and anti-drone measures, a joint meeting of top officers from the Army, Border Security Force (BSF) and the Punjab Police was held at Headquarters Western Command, Chandimandir, to work out modalities on strengthening border management.The meeting focused on achieving effective control over ingress of drugs, weapons and illegal human crossings across the International Border in Punjab, and to bring in complete synergy amongst the forces regarding border management.Key issues deliberated upon included measures to break the narco-terror nexus, implementation of anti-drone measures and the deployment of counter-drone systems along the border along with joint training on counter-drone and anti-smuggling operations.Creation of a unified intelligence grid and enhanced intelligence sharing, regular exchange of inputs from drone wreckage analysis and forensics, and night dominance along vulnerable border stretches were also discussed.During the meeting, it was also resolved to have regular operational reviews, joint border grid meetings and seamless coordination to counter narco-terrorism and protect the affected states from this menace.The meeting was chaired by Lt Gen Pushpendra Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Command. Lt Gen HS Sahi, Chief of Staff, Western Command, Parveen Sinha, Special Director General (Law and Order), Punjab, Nilabh Kishore, ADGP Narcotics, Punjab were among those who were present.On August 12, Chief of Army Staff, Gen Dhiraj Seth had met the Punjab Chief Minister in Chandigarh where issues related to civil-military synergy, regional security, border management, operational works to enhance defence preparedness, recruitment and rehabilitation of Agniveers figured on the agenda.The increasing use of drones for smuggling contraband is a cause of concern in the security establishment, with Punjab being the worst affected state. The Ministry of Home Affairs said in Parliament in July 2026 that drone-assisted smuggling has increased exponentially since 2021, with Punjab accounting for 298 of the 305 such nation-wide incidents in 2025.Trends of cross border narcotics infiltration reveal that drug trafficking syndicates operating across the border have increasingly been employing sophisticated methods such as GPS-enabled consignments, encrypted communications and local receiver networks, the ministry had stated in the Rajya Sabha.