The Bhutanese Leading the way.
National Assembly endorses 9 recommendations under Action Taken Report on crime prevention and reduction
Lyonpo Tshering, the Minister of Home Affairs (MoHA), during the presentation of Action Taken Report (ATR) on crime prevention and reduction stated that the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Employment (MoICE) under strict alcohol control measure, is discussing to bring back Tuesday as a ‘dry day’.
This is one such ATR on crime prevention and reduction, based on the nine recommendations proposed by the Women, Children and Youth Committee (WCYC).
On 10th December, 2025 Lyonpo as representative of the lead agency of the report, shared that to prevent and reduce crime, the ministry collaborated with 10 stakeholders including three ministries, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Employment (MoICE), Ministry of Health (MoH) and Ministry of Education and Skill Development (MoESD).
Others include Royal Bhutan Police (RBP), National Commission for Women and Children (NCWC), Respect, Educate, Nurture, Empower Women (RENEW), The PEMA Secretariat, Nazhoen Lamtoen, Department of Law and Order (DLO) and Bhutan Information Communication and Media Authority (BICMA).
Lyonpo said that the rule observing every Tuesday as “dry day” was in place from 1999 to 2023. In October 2023, the government made a policy decision to do away with the dry day regulation and the Ministry notified the public accordingly.
MoICE has been enforcing strict alcohol control through the Trade & Industry Rules 2023, implemented since August 2023, and is currently reviewing these rules including consultation with the private sector.
Due to limited manpower, MoICE also places responsibility on business owners, who must pledge not to serve alcohol to minors. Violators are fined Nu. 22,500 for the first offence and face license cancellation for repeat violations.
As per the report on the ATR, MoH is finalizing the Multisectoral National Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (2025–2030), which calls for stronger alcohol legislation, advertising restrictions, outlet regulation, improved services, and reduced drunk driving.
Health facilities have already provided brief interventions to about 4,400 people, and the ministry is working with religious bodies and consulting medical professionals and CSOs on a new Rehabilitation Services Program for Alcohol Use Disorder, with an estimated annual need for around 1,000 residential rehabilitation cases.
The MoH has also proposed lowering the legal BAC limit for drivers and recognizes the need for a dedicated National Alcohol Policy, though its key elements are being integrated into the revised National Health Policy under government directives.
Meanwhile, alcohol harm-reduction measures continue through multisectoral collaboration, along with strengthened mental health services, including plans to deploy psychiatrists in regional hospitals, support for four specialist trainees, and the placement of 12 clinical counsellors in hospitals nationwide.
Lyonpo shared that to strengthen the law enforcement agency, RBP has installed 896 CCTVs at various locations across the country and is further planning to install additional cameras in risky and populated locations.
The total budget allocated for 12th FYP was Nu. 1,363.442 million and in 13th FYP it was increased to Nu. 1,625.62 million.
RBP has allocated a total of Nu. 91.76 million in the current financial year 2025-2026 to implement various initiatives aimed at reducing crime in the society.
Also, RBP has established Narcotic Drug Unit at Paro International Airport on 25th July, 2025 to enhance vigilance against drug trafficking and another in Narcotic Drugs Division in Phuenthsholing on 15th October, 2025, to oversee four Southern Dzongkhags.
Further, a Memorandum of Understanding to be signed between Singapore Police Force and Royal Bhutan Police for the capacity building.
From July 2025 onward, RBP carried out extensive advocacy and awareness efforts, including 137 programs reaching 17,614 people and 127 drug-related programs, while broader sensitization initiatives from 2022 to November 2025 covered over 156,000 participants across 14 dzongkhags.
RBP is also advancing institutional improvements, such as developing a Nu.17.41 million digital case management system, establishing a Women and Child Protection Desk in Wangdue by March 2026, and expanding Thimphu’s Safe City Project with 32 new CCTV cameras since July 2025.
Additional enhancements include procuring drug testing and forensic kits, securing UNICEF support for online child protection training, and upgrading investigative capacity through specialized trainings in digital forensics and cybercrime.
To strengthen operational efficiency, the police are in the process of procuring five patrol vehicles for southern divisions and expanding their canine unit, with 10 more dogs planned for deployment in key border checkpoints. Due to the high cost of speed guns, the RBP will also introduce portable smart speed cameras nationwide, supported by a Nu.6.5 million budget, allowing traffic personnel to monitor speeding more effectively across various locations.
The Department of Law and Order (DLO) has been actively working to prevent crime through public awareness programs, particularly on Trafficking in Persons (TIP), targeting vulnerable groups such as taxi drivers, women working in entertainment outlets, youth and film artists.
It has also trained law enforcement agencies including RBP, OAG, immigration, customs, ICP authorities, judiciary officials and diplomats on TIP.
The DLO has also tightened enforcement on gambling, taking action against 800 online organizers and referring 17 repeat offenders to the RBP, while continuing to monitor illegal activities on TikTok.
To counter scams, the department issued public notices, created awareness videos, held a BBS panel discussion and conducted a TikTok Live session joined by about 1,300 viewers. It has also raised awareness on deepfake risks and proposed legal reviews to strengthen penalties for pyramid schemes and online gambling.
To enhance financial security and improve responses to scamming, DLO coordinated multiple inter-agency consultations involving BICMA, telecom companies, BQPCA, RMA and RBP.
These efforts resulted in several joint measures such as removing old mobile numbers from linked bank accounts before recycling, proposing an extension of SIM card retention periods, ensuring timely deactivation of SIMs used by foreign workers, reviewing the number of SIM cards issued per person, addressing potential hacking risks and improving monitoring of accounts used for illegal activities.
The agencies also agreed on real-time freezing of bank accounts to recover scammed funds, strengthening suspicious transaction reporting, and assigning responsibilities related to cryptocurrency-related scams and unauthorized training or mentorship schemes.
According to the ATR, child protection system has been strengthened too.
NCWC has expanded community and school-based protection committees to 288 schools, and operates the national Helpline 1098.
The DLO has requested NCWC revisions to the legal definition of child trafficking to align with international standards.
MoESD has developed an Integrated Childcare Advisory Package with UNICEF, trained ECCD facilitators in life skills and comprehensive sexuality education, and integrated CSE into the national curriculum across all grades, reaching hundreds of schools and educators.
Civil society group Nazhoen Lamtoen has created community child protection teams, provided shelter to 121 children, and supported more than 1,500 children nationwide.
The PEMA Secretariat has significantly enhanced national reporting and referral systems reducing response times from 15 days to just 5 hours, while strengthening mental health and protection services through new national strategies, expanded hotline services, standardized awareness modules, and the establishment of The PEMA Home for emergency care.
The Ministry of Health has established one-stop crisis centers at JDWNRH to handle rape and child sexual abuse cases.
On youth awareness and engagement RENEW, in partnership with MoICE under the Youth Engagement and Livelihood Program (YELP), supports youth through tiered internship stipends and operates 14 Community Service Centres nationwide.
Thirteen Youth Centres across the country also provide educational and recreational engagement opportunities, recording nearly 39,000 youth visits in FY 2024–2025.
In parallel, MoESD and the Department of Law and Order (DLO) have conducted extensive school-based programmes, including resilience workshops, tobacco awareness campaigns, and trafficking-in-persons (TiP) advocacy, reaching more than 20,000 students.
Efforts to prevent domestic violence have also intensified.
The NCWC is reviewing the Domestic Violence Prevention Act and Marriage Act, developing a national strategy to eliminate gender-based violence, and updating SOPs to address technology-facilitated abuse.
RENEW continues to expand community-level outreach, with centres nationwide and targeted programmes in Samdrup Jongkhar that have benefited over 2,000 individuals. Economic empowerment initiatives, including tailoring and salon training, are being implemented to support survivors, while volunteers and clinical counsellors continue to provide essential care and guidance.
Access to mental health and child protection services is being significantly expanded.
MoESD recruited 31 new school counsellors in July 2025, while the MoH expanding mental health services to all dzongkhags.
The PEMA Secretariat, under Her Majesty’s command, has delivered nationwide mental-health programmes, handled nearly 1,900 cases most involving children and operationalized a 200-bed rehabilitation centre offering both inpatient and outpatient treatment.
Reintegration efforts are ongoing for children in conflict with the law and victims of trafficking.
Nazhoen Lamtoen has reintegrated 79 youths released from the YDRC and facilitated 66 diversion cases through community service.
The DLO, under the multisectoral TiP response mechanism, assists victims with reintegration and previously coordinated skills training for over 200 repatriated women. The department is also reviewing the cooling period.
Meanwhile, agencies are assessing the need for stronger regulations to monitor online content and public spaces.
BICMA has issued warnings to TikTok content creators, and is updating the ICM Act with GovTech, and works with RBP and global platforms to address harmful content.
The DLO continues to promote responsible online behaviour through public advisories and engagement with artists, reality-show organisers, and social media influencers to safeguard national harmony.
