A total of 508 people were arrested in island-wide police operations carried out on Thursday (6) under the ongoing “A Nation United” national anti-drug programme, police said.
Some 27,054 individuals were subjected to inspection during the day’s operations, according to figures released by police.
Among those detained, 20 were identified as suspects directly involved in criminal offences, and 142 were people wanted on open warrants. Police said a further 65 were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and 122 for reckless driving.
A rolling daily count
“A Nation United” — known in Sinhala as Ratama Ekata — is a sustained national crackdown targeting drug offences and organised crime, run through daily raids by police alongside other security agencies. Arrest totals are published as a rolling enforcement tally rather than as a single operation, and the daily figure fluctuates: LankaNewz reported 706 arrests in a day under the same programme in mid-July.
The scale of the drive has become part of a wider argument about pressure on the prison system. This week saw unrest across several facilities, and Justice Minister Harshana Nanayakkara has tied the disturbances to the drug crackdown, promising changes to bail law to ease overcrowding. A National Dangerous Drugs Control Board official separately suggested withdrawal symptoms among newly detained users may be contributing to tension inside prisons.
Ada Derana’s report did not give a breakdown of narcotics seized during Thursday’s operations, name the divisions involved, or identify a quoting officer.
Source: Ada Derana.
