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‘Out-of-the-box’ crime: Drug dealing takes digital route
Peddlers now avoid in-person meetings to minimise risk of arrest. Instead, they book riders through delivery apps and share live tracking links with buyers, reveals HT investigation
LUCKNOW Heightened surveillance and sustained crackdowns by the Lucknow Police on street-level drug dealing have forced narcotics peddlers to abandon physical meetings and traditional handoffs, driving them to adopt app-based delivery services as a new, covert mode of operation, an HT investigation has found.
Ordering groceries, documents or electronics through mobile apps has become routine in urban India. The same logistics ecosystem, however, is now being exploited to move illegal drugs such as hashish and marijuana, with peddlers outsourcing last-mile delivery to unsuspecting riders working for quick-commerce and logistics platforms.
In 2024, HT had exposed multiple narcotics hot spots across Lucknow, prompting intensified police action in several vulnerable areas. While some of these locations continue to exist, traffickers — under pressure from frequent raids, increased surveillance — have largely shifted to a low-contact, home-delivery model requiring little more than a smartphone and online payment.
Over the past several weeks, HT reporters interacted with suspected drug peddlers operating in Lucknow and neighbouring districts through encrypted messaging apps and calls. Conversations reviewed by HT show sellers openly offering doorstep delivery through city-based courier services, describing the method as “safe”, “routine” and “low-risk” compared to physical exchanges.
We have not named the delivery platforms involved, as there is no evidence of institutional complicity. In multiple chats, peddlers acknowledged that delivery riders were unaware of the illegal contents and were being used as unwitting carriers.
In one exchange, a peddler offered to deliver hashish worth ₹3,500 for one tola, assuring the reporter — posing as a buyer — that it would be sent “just like a normal parcel”. “Rider ko kuchh nahi pata hota (the rider doesn’t know anything),” the seller said, adding that the package would be disguised as groceries or personal items. Screenshots of the chats are with HT. The peddler claimed delivery within two hours after online payment, with an additional ₹100–200 charged via the app. The HT reporter did not place the order.
Another peddler insisted on a minimum order of over ₹1,000 for doorstep delivery after online payment. “Kahan pe aapko chahiye, woh bataiye (tell me where you want it delivered),” the seller said. This transaction was also not pursued.
No face-to-face meetings
HT spoke to several users, who requested anonymity, and found that peddlers now deliberately avoid in-person meetings to minimise the risk of arrest. Instead, they book riders through delivery apps and share live tracking links with buyers.
“Once the order is accepted, the rider picks up a sealed package from a changing location —often a roadside point, rented room or an intermediary — and delivers it to the customer without knowing what’s inside,” said one buyer.
Peddlers favour this model
The investigation found that younger peddlers, in particular, favour this model as it helps them evade police surveillance. Unlike fixed selling points, app-based deliveries leave no predictable physical pattern. Pickup points, phone numbers and online identities are frequently changed, while riders rotate automatically through platform algorithms.
Students and young professionals appear to be a key target market, with sellers advertising drugs as “discreet”, “safe” and requiring “no meeting”, offering delivery timelines of 30 to 90 minutes, similar to food and grocery apps.
Industry experts say the model exploits gaps in the delivery ecosystem. “These platforms are designed for speed and scale. Riders have no practical way to verify the contents of sealed parcels unless something appears suspicious. Criminal networks are adapting faster because of the pressure created by police action on the ground,” said a logistics industry professional.
Police officials maintain that the shift itself reflects the impact of stricter enforcement and say monitoring of digital trails and coordination with cyber and narcotics units has been stepped up to counter the evolving tactics.
HT tried to contact police commissioner (Lucknow), Amrendra K Sengar, and joint CP (crime), Amit Verma, for their comment on the issue, but there was no response till the filing of this report.
Meanwhile, deputy commissioner of police (crime) Kamlesh Dixit acknowledged that drug smugglers are taking the new online route. He told HT: “A dedicated team in the surveillance cell is formed to keep track of such activities by monitoring phone calls, text messages and some times encrypted messaging applications to gather evidence of drug deals, prices and network structures.”
“Agencies monitor public and private social media accounts for coded language, photos of drugs or cash and location tags that can provide clues about illegal activities. Undercover officers, posing as buyers or fellow dealers, infiltrate drug networks to collect first-hand evidence over extended periods,” he added.
KEY ACTION TAKEN IN 2025
145 drug smugglers arrested under the NDPS Act
Narcotics worth crores seized, including marijuana, cocaine, smack, opium and morphine
187 accused held for manufacturing and selling illicit liquor
Over 31,000 litres of illicit liquor seized
Source: Lucknow Police
