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Tribune News Service
Solan, April 17
The Solan police have registered as many as 25 cases of drug peddling so far this year, in which 34 people, including four foreign nationals, have been arrested.
As the district shares a border with Haryana, a large number of drug peddling cases have surfaced in the recent past, highlighting the issue of rising drug abuse among the youth in the area.
In a majority of the cases, lure of easy money has acted as an encouragement for the local youth to take to drug peddling.
Solan ASP Shiv Kumar Sharma said it was surprising to note that youngsters in the 21 to 30 age group were involved in at least 80 per cent of these cases. What begins as a trial under peer pressure soon becomes a compulsion as these are habit forming drugs. Youngsters then take to selling them to fund their own dose. He said as many as four Nigerians have been arrested during the past one year for heroine peddling and at least three were languishing in judicial custody for the past several months.
The police have seized more than 10 kg cannabis and 20.238 kg poppy husk from January 1 to April 15. Four Nepalese and one Nigerian are among 34 persons arrested for this nefarious activity.
Seizure made under the Excise Act for liquor smuggling have also registered a steep increase with 65 people having been arrested this year. As many as 1,049 bottles of the IMFL, 3,152 bottles of country-made liquor and 206 bottles of beer have been seized in these cases.
Liquor smuggling has also witnessed an increase in view of the Lok Sabha elections and a majority of those arrested were involved in the trade, say police officials.
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