Punjab’s 18 districts among India’s worst drug-hit: Sampla

Former Union minister and BJP leader Vijay Sampla on Tuesday claimed that Punjab’s 18 districts are among the country’s worst-hit by drug abuse.

Former Union minister and BJP leader Vijay Sampla on Tuesday claimed that Punjab’s 18 districts are among the country’s worst-hit by drug abuse.

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Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, Sampla cited a survey by the Union ministry of social justice and empowerment saying the state’s 82 percent of area is under the menace.

He said the survey released on June 26 on the occasion of International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking found that out of the 22 districts in state, 18 figure in the list of 272 districts in India that the central government has declared as ‘most affected districts’ in terms of drug abuse and addiction.

Sampla, who remained the minister of state in social justice and empowerment ministry during previous tenure of the NDA government at the Centre, said that the worst affected districts are Faridkot, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Bathinda, Ferozepur, Fazilka, Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, Ludhiana, Mansa, Moga, Pathankot, Sangrur, Patiala, Muktsar, SBS Nagar, Tarn Taran and Hoshiarpur.

Accompanied by BJP’s former state secretary Vineet Joshi, he also rolled out the annual Nasha Mukt Bharat programme under which Rs 260 crore budgetary allocation has been made to root out drugs in the affected districts.