Several measures taken to combat drug menace: MHA
Nearly 8,000 kgs of narcotics destroyed in 5 yrs
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Dec 11: In an indication of worrisome situation vis-à-vis drug abuse and consequential efforts of different law enforcement agencies to combat the same, over 6500 cases were registered and 9424 arrests made under Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPSA) in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir since 2021. Moreover, nearly 8,000 kilograms of narcotics were destroyed in last five years.
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This came to the fore from the replies made by Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs Nityanand Rai and Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment B L Verma in response to different questions in the Parliament today.
The MoS in MHA also informed the Parliament that Government has taken various measures to combat the drug menace and necessary assistance is being provided to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir like all States and other UTs in the country.
According to the data shared by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, a total of 1543 cases were registered and 2217 arrests made under NDPSA in the year 2021 in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
In the year 2022, the number of cases registered under NDPSA increased to 1857 and arrested persons to 2755. Likewise, a total of 2149 cases were registered and 3072 arrests made under NDPSA in the year 2023. During the current year till September, a total of 985 cases were registered and 1380 persons arrested under the stringent law.
It is pertinent to mention here that Department of Social Justice and Empowerment is the nodal department for drug demand reduction and to tackle the issue of substance use, the department is implementing National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction, a Centrally sponsored scheme under which financial assistance is provided to the States and Union Territories.
As per the data shared by MoS in the Ministry of Home Affairs, a total of 830 kilograms of Hashish, 272 kilograms of Heroin and 6722 kilograms of Poppy Straw were destroyed in Jammu and Kashmir in last five years (2019-2023). Apart from this, large quantity of intoxicants like tablets were also destroyed by different law enforcement agencies in the Union Territory.
“A 4-tier Narco-Coordination Centre (NCORD) mechanism for ensuring better coordination between Central & State Drug Law Enforcement Agencies and other stake holders in the field of controlling drug trafficking and drug abuse in India has been established”, the Minister said, adding “an all in one NCORD portal has been developed for information related to drug law enforcement”.
Further, a dedicated Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) headed by Additional Director General/ Inspector General level Police Officer has been established in each State/ Union Territory to function as the NCORD Secretariat for the State/ Union Territory and follow-up on compliance of decisions taken in NCORD meetings at different levels, the Minister said.
According to the Minister, to monitor the investigation of important and significant seizures, a Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) under the chairmanship of Director General, Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has been set up by Government of India.
Stating that assistance is being provided by Central Government to the States and UTs for upgradation of existing forensic science laboratories under different schemes, the Minister said that a high-level dedicated group has been created in National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) in November 2022 to analyze the drug trafficking through maritime routes, challenges and solutions (Maritime Security Group- NSCS).
Moreover, a National Narcotics Helpline “Madak-Padarth Nished Asoochna Kendra” (MANAS) has been created as a 24×7 toll-free National Narcotics Call Centre. Accordingly, MANAS has been envisioned as an integrated system providing a single platform for citizens to log, register, track and resolve drug related issues/problems through various modes of communications like call, SMS, Chatbot, e-mail & web-link.
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