AGENCY
NEW DELHI, Mar 27
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has announced a zero tolerance policy against drug abuse in the state.
The chief minister, in response to a discussion on a resolution brought by Congress MLA Kewal Singh Pathania in the Assembly on Thursday regarding the elimination of drugs and making a permanent policy against it, announced that the government would take strict action within a month against the Himachal Pradesh government officials and employees found involved in drug smuggling.
He also announced that the government would take strict action against the state government employees who provide secret information to the drug smugglers.
Satisfied with the chief minister’s response, MLA Kewal Singh Pathania withdrew his private member resolution.
Earlier, while responding to the discussion on this issue, the chief minister said the state government was completely serious about thwarting the increasing drug abuse in the state.
He said that the government is working on a zero tolerance policy on drug abuse.
“To root out drug abuse from the state, the government has introduced two bills in the assembly on Wednesday,” he said, adding that to connect people involved in drug abuse with the mainstream of society, the government is going to open a drug de-addiction centre in an area of 150 bighas in Kotla near Solan.
For this, the government has made a provision of Rs 5 crore in the budget and the work will be started this year, he informed.
The chief minister said when his government came to power, it worked with full responsibility and notified the pending NDPS Act during the tenure of the previous BJP government.
He said after the notification of this Act, the property of a person involved in the drug business in the state can be confiscated.
He further said that he also took up with the Punjab government to step-up vigilance in the inter-state border.
He said that surveillance has been increased on the routes through which drugs are being supplied in the state.
“Due to the efforts of the government and the police department, a 30 percent decline has been registered in the drug trade,” he said.
He further said that after the implementation of the new law, end-to-end information about the drug trade in the state will be available.
The Chief Minister said that mapping is being done in 3605 panchayats of the state and it will be revealed at the ward level who takes drugs and from where the ‘Chitta’ is coming.
He said that the government has issued strict instructions to all Superintendent of Police (SPs) that any interference of any officer or politician regarding the drug trade should be ignored.
Sukhu said that the vigilance of the police has been increased everywhere in the state so that the youth can be saved from getting trapped in the quagmire of drugs.
Earlier, Ranjeet Singh Rana, Sanjay Ratna and Rakesh Jamwal participated in the discussion on this resolution.
