Stricter penalty to curb drug menace soon

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 24

To curb the growing drug trafficking and addiction, especially in the border areas, the government is planning stricter penalty and punishment.

The Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police have already been directed to examine the issue and, if need be, a Bill could be tabled in the monsoon session so as to make the necessary amendments. Though the Governor, Chief Minister and High Court have expressed concern stressed the need to curb the menace, lack of stringent laws help culprits to get bail easily and on many occasions also go scot-free.

The problem is far more grave in the border areas of Una, Sirmaur, Shimla and Solan. The authorities are keen that the law should be made stringent so that the property owned by those indulging in this illegal trade can be confiscated.

“The provisions of the law need to be made more stringent if we want to curb the drug menace. This not only pertains to the illegal cultivation of cannabis and poppy but also the involvement of youths in drug trafficking,” said a senior police officer.

What is most worrisome is the synthetic drug spillover from Punjab into Himachal which is posing a challenge to the police. Another aspect which is really disturbing and a cause for concern is the role of some chemists who are making many drugs available to the youth easily. The suspicious role of many chemists in making the drugs available to youths has come under the scanner of the police who are recommending that the licences of such chemists must be cancelled by making a provision in the law.

There has been death of three youths in Una alone due to drug overdose in the recent months. There have been similar cases of youths falling victim to drugs in Shimla, Kullu and Solan. There have bene demands from locals as well as NGOs that concrete steps must be taken to check this trend. What’s worrying for the state police is that cases and arrests under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act have shown a steep increase. The state police registered 644 cases and made 755 arrests under the Act in 2014 for drug peddling and those involved in drug trafficking, considering the rise in addiction among youths. This is the highest figure to date.