Champawat police arrested five men under Operation Prahar, an anti-drug operation.[1] A joint team of the Special Operations Group and Chalthi police was checking vehicles on 28 October 2026.[1] Officers stopped car UK06 BS 2063 and searched it.[1] At the Chalthi checkpoint gate, they found 992 g of charas in the car’s boot.[1] Police seized the car at the scene.[1] The five were Narayan Nath of Kachlakot, Nainital; Jitendra Singh Rana and Pan Singh Rana of Bamanpuri in Udham Singh Nagar; Mohan Joshi of Chalthia, Champawat; and Kalicharan Rana of Dhusri in Udham Singh Nagar.[2]

Two of the five are serving gram pradhans, or village heads: Jitendra Singh Rana heads Bamanpuri and Kalicharan Rana heads Dhusri, while Mohan Joshi is a former head of Ehta Bihi in Nanakmatta.[3] Circle Officer Devendra Singh said two current and one former village head were among the five arrested.[3] The car belonged to Pan Singh Rana.[3] A case was registered against all five at Kotwali Champawat under sections 8, 20, 29 and 60 of the NDPS Act.[1] They were produced in court and sent to jail, the Circle Officer said.[3]

The checking was carried out on the instructions of Champawat Superintendent of Police Rekha Yadav and under the supervision of Circle Officer Devendra Singh Kapravan.[1] Police described the action as part of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami’s ‘Drugs Free Devbhoomi – Nasha Mukt Bharat’ campaign.[1]