SRINAGAR, Aug 18: Jammu and Kashmir Police have arrested 4,536 persons in a crackdown against illegal narcotic trade networks and booked 463 under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT NDPS) Act since 2023, officials said.
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Since 2023, a total of 3190 cases have been registered and 4536 people have been arrested in the crackdown against the illegal narcotic trade network, an official spokesman said.
In order to break the supply chain, the law-enforcing authorities have invoked PIT NDPS Act against the drug kingpins, resulting in 463 orders of detention for the last 18 months.
The swift intelligence resulted in the interception and seizure of huge amounts of commercial quantities, 319 during the year 2023, whereas the figure for the year 2024 up to June stands at 110.
To prevent pilferage of seized narcotics, drugs are disposed of through court-ordered incineration. 29,306 kg of drugs and 74,179 pharmaceuticals were destroyed in 2023, with 4,365 kg of drugs and 26,772 pharmaceuticals destroyed in the first half of 2024.
In a total of 43 such cases, the Jammu and Kashmir Police have attached residential houses, landed property, vehicles, etc., amounting to Rs. 10.36 crore, since 2023 under the Narco Act.
As many as 39 people allegedly involved in narco-terror networks were arrested, and 19 cases were registered during the past one and a half year.
During 2023, illegal cultivation of poppy and cannabis over 9448 Kanals of land was destroyed by law enforcement agencies.
On the rehabilitation front, the police department has established 10 drug de-addiction centres other than the 4 drug de-addiction centres of the Social Welfare Department and 21 Health/Additional Treatment Facility centres (ATFs) across the Union Territory.
In the year 2023, there will have been a total of 14180 OPDs and 1931 IPD treatments. These figures for 2024 up to June stand at 5318 and 561, respectively. Besides, there are six private drug de-addiction centres functioning in Jammu and Kashmir.
Given the seriousness of the issue, all the law enforcement agencies have been instructed to adopt stringent measures that include the attachment of properties in NDPS cases with the objective of disrupting the drug trafficking networks financially.
In its efforts against drug abuse, the J&K Police has achieved substantial results, marked by rigorous law enforcement actions, large-scale seizures, effective judicial proceedings, and extensive community engagement.
Illegal drugs and narcotics remain a pressing issue with far-reaching consequences, encompassing health, social, and economic dimensions that affect individuals, families, and the community on a profound level.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has pledged to fight the drug menace through a coordinated and multi-pronged approach which includes prevention, enforcement, treatment and rehabilitation, and IEC strategies.
The spokesman said that steps have been taken to address the problem of illegal drugs and narcotics being reviewed under the Narco-Coordination Centre (NCORD) mechanism through regular meetings of NCORD being chaired by the Chief Secretary of Union Territory.
The forum has been committed to ensuring the adoption of a “zero tolerance policy” against drug trafficking to curb the menace of drugs by strengthening institutional structure, coordination among all narcotics agencies, and extensive public awareness campaign.
The law enforcement agencies, particularly the Jammu and Kashmir Police, has been instructed to ensure intelligence sharing, strict action, effective and lacuna-free investigation in all cases of drug trafficking during the recent NCORD and has emphasised leveraging information from the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the NIDAAN portal to target drug peddlers more effectively.
UT-level NCORD has also laid stress on strict regulation of the sale of psychotropic substances and other related drugs through the introduction of Computerized computerised billing system (CBS) and CCTV installations across all drug markets of wholesale and retail license holders through the Drug Control Organisation/Health and Medical Education Department.
Mass awareness programs to particularly educate the youth against the detrimental effects of drug abuse are being conducted through various agencies of the government, besides collaborations with NGOs and civil society groups, the spokesman added.
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