Crackdown on theft of 5G telecom infrastructure in Punjab; 61 arrested

Chandigarh, Sep 16 (IANS) In a major crackdown on the theft of critical 5G telecom infrastructure targeting Bharti Airtel Ltd, the Punjab Police, on Tuesday, arrested 61 people and registered 95 FIRs across the state, preventing widespread disruption of essential telecom services.

Following reports of thefts involving high-value 5G infrastructure, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted on the order of Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav.

The SIT, led by Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Rajpal Sandhu, worked in coordination with district police units to apprehend the accused and make massive recoveries of stolen equipment.

Divulging details, DIG Sandhu said the accused had specifically targeted high-value essential GUC1 Cards (base band units), which are critical for the transmission of 4G and 5G signals.

"The entire theft operation was executed in under two minutes, after which the culprits fled the spot," he added.

Using a combination of technical surveillance and human intelligence, Punjab Police have busted the networks involved in these thefts.

"Further investigation is underway to trace both forward and backward linkages and unravel the entire network," the DIG said, adding that the SIT is also actively probing the matter to determine any potential insider involvement.

The Punjab Police have warned all anti-social elements to cease such activities immediately or face strict legal action.

With district police forces forming dedicated teams, further arrests are expected as the investigation progresses.

Meanwhile in its continuing war against drugs "Yudh Nashian Virudh", the police conducted raids at 359 locations on Tuesday, leading to the arrest of 86 drug smugglers after registration of 75 FIRs across the state.

With this, the number of total drug smugglers arrested has reached to 29,804 in 199 days.

The raids have resulted in recovery of 21.1 kg heroin, 2 kg opium, 254 kg poppy husk, 1,156 intoxicant tablets and capsules, and Rs 500 drug money from the possession of accused drug smugglers.

--IANS

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