By Staff Reporter
SUKKUR: The provincial Sindh government announced on Wednesday a sweeping offensive against the heavily armed criminal gangs that have long terrorized the marshy riverine areas along the Indus River, vowing to deploy all available resources in a bid to dismantle the networks responsible for kidnappings, extortion and violent assaults.
Sindh’s home minister, Zia-ul-Hassan Lanjar, speaking to reporters alongside the province’s inspector general of police, Jawed Akhtar Odho, said a “massive operation” aimed at notorious dacoits — bandits — who operate in the Katcha belt, a rugged expanse of dense vegetation and shifting waterways that straddles the border with Punjab Province, is on cards. “We are definitely heading towards a massive operation,” Lanjar said. “We will use whatever resources we have, with specific targets and take ruthless action against the infamous dacoits that you see on social media.” “Dacoits will be destroyed.”
The announcement signals a renewed push to reclaim control over the Katcha areas, which span districts in central and southern Sindh, including Kashmore, Ghotki, Shikarpur and Jacobabad — regions notorious for dacoity, kidnappings for ransom and tribal conflicts. The gangs, often equipped with sophisticated weapons, have used the difficult terrain as a sanctuary, evading law enforcement and preying on travelers along major highways.
Lanjar said the operation would be targeted and unrelenting. “It will be a targeted operation against high-profile dacoits… they will face ruthless action.” He warned that absconders and those who consider themselves “big champions” would face stern consequences. “There will be a fight, and they will get their just deserts.”
Still, the minister held out an olive branch for those willing to lay down arms. “Dacoits would be given a chance to surrender before the courts,” he said, though he stressed that surrender does not equate to pardon or immunity. Under a policy approved by the Sindh cabinet in October 2025 for the Katcha areas in the Sukkur and Larkana divisions, voluntary surrender may serve as a mitigating factor in court sentencing, but all individuals must face the law.
The Sindh police, supported by paramilitary Rangers, will lead the effort, Lanjar said, dismissing the need for army involvement. “The Sindh police is capable and the Rangers are with us in this, so I do not think we will need the army in our internal matters here.” He pledged to equip personnel with modern tools, including any necessary drones or armored vehicles. “We will provide all necessary equipment needed to carry out this operation.”
When pressed on reports that the dacoits themselves use drones, Lanjar pushed back. “I do not think drones have reached them. Action is definitely being taken against their facilitators, too.” Coordination with Punjab authorities will be essential, given that areas like Machka extend across the provincial border. Lanjar said he had instructed Sindh’s inspector general to consult with his Punjab counterpart and the regional police officer in Bahawalpur. “This will surely happen only after a joint effort,” he said, expressing optimism about the outcome. “I have strong hopes that we will wipe out these dacoits.”
The latest drive comes amid a string of high-profile incidents that have highlighted the gangs’ audacity and the persistent threat to public safety. On Dec. 16, around 25 dacoits attacked a bus near the Sindh-Punjab border, injuring the driver and kidnapping 20 passengers. Police recovered all the travelers unharmed the next day in a large-scale operation. In another brazen assault on Sept. 5, 2025, the Tanvir Indhar gang kidnapped at least 10 people from multiple vehicles on the Sukkur-Multan Motorway in Sadiqabad tehsil — the first reported instance of Katcha gangs striking directly on the motorway within Punjab’s limits.
In response, police in Rahim Yar Khan began running escorted night convoys to shield motorists. The two provinces had previously vowed decisive action in August 2024, after a deadly ambush by dacoits in the Machka area that left a dozen policemen dead. Efforts to curb the gangs have shown some progress. In October 2025, at least 72 dacoits from the Katcha area surrendered in a ceremony at Police Lines in Shikarpur, laying down an array of modern weapons, including Kalashnikovs, rocket launchers and anti-aircraft guns. The combined bounty on their heads exceeded Rs60 million.
Last month, a large-scale joint operation by Sindh police and Rangers in the Katcha belt along the Punjab-Sindh border in Rajanpur district targeted entrenched criminal networks, yielding significant results in dismantling safe havens. And just weeks ago, police rescued about a dozen bus passengers abducted by a Katcha gang from a highway near the Sindh-Balochistan border, further illustrating the gangs’ grip on transport routes. Authorities have launched periodic crackdowns over the years, but the outlaws’ resilience in the Katcha’s labyrinthine landscape has allowed them to regroup. This time, Lanjar insisted, the operation is already underway. “You may consider that the operation has begun from today,” he added.
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