Ahmedabad, Dec 8 (IANS) In a major push to crack down on cyber fraud, Gujarat Police’s Cyber Centre of Excellence has rolled out ‘Operation Mule Hunt’, a coordinated action plan aimed at uprooting the entire network of cybercriminals operating through mule bank accounts.

The initiative was reviewed in a high-level meeting chaired by Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, who directed police units across the state to intensify verification drives — from banks to police stations — based on detailed cybercrime analysis.

Sanghavi stressed that the drive must not stop at account operators but track the chain up to the masterminds who run these scams. At the same time, he issued a clear directive to ensure no innocent account holder is harassed, adding that individuals with no link to cybercrime — despite money entering their accounts unknowingly — must be thoroughly verified and treated with caution.

Senior officials including the CID Crime DGP, police commissioners, range IGs and district police chiefs joined the meeting via video conference to strengthen inter-department coordination and accelerate both prevention and detection of cyber fraud across Gujarat.

Gujarat has seen a steady rise in cybercrime in recent years, with cases ranging from online financial fraud and phishing to identity theft and OTP scams, prompting the state to strengthen its digital security framework. Gujarat has built one of the most proactive cybercrime-response systems in India, backed by a mix of technology, infrastructure and coordinated policing.

The state’s Cyber Centre of Excellence (CCoE) functions as the command hub, using advanced data analytics, AI-based monitoring and inter-agency coordination to trace fraud patterns and dismantle organised cybercrime networks. Gujarat Police has also expanded dedicated cyber police stations across districts, set up cyber investigation labs, and trained officers in digital forensics to improve the speed and quality of investigations.

Public-facing initiatives include statewide cyber awareness drives, school-college workshops, and campaigns urging citizens to use the national helpline 1930 for quick fraud reporting, which significantly increases the chances of fund recovery.

The government has also integrated its systems with the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), enabling faster freezing of fraudulent accounts and better interstate coordination.

–IANS

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