Special Working Group: North India’s top cops to form panel for curbing drug menace

Senior police officials of northern states and Union territories on Thursday decided to form a special working group so that field officials can regularly share information and take efforts against the drug problem in a coordinated way.

Senior police officials of northern states and Union territories on Thursday decided to form a special working group so that field officials can regularly share information and take efforts against the drug problem in a coordinated way.

The officials held a detailed discussion on the menace of drugs in the meeting hosted by Chandigarh police and laid emphasis on coordinated action to deal with it. (HT File Photo)

The officials held a detailed discussion on the menace of drugs in the meeting hosted by Chandigarh police and laid emphasis on coordinated action to deal with it. The meeting was attended by officials from Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi, besides the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and chief director controller Chandigarh. 
 Haryana director general of police P K Agrawal, Chandigarh DGP Praveer Ranjan and Punjab’s additional director general of police (Law and Order) Arpit Shukla were among those present in the meeting.

Discussions were held on the drug menace in the region and the various strategies to control it. During the meeting, deliberations on source of drugs and psychotropic substances, the routes etc were held and strategies to combat it were discussed.

The importance of information sharing by the cutting-edge functionaries for coordination purpose was also discussed in the meeting.

This coordination would result in seamless coordination between the operating units of various states, which would result in synergised and effective police action against drug peddlers and suppliers based out of multiple states, an official statement about the meeting said.

To improve the effectiveness of this mechanism, it was decided to invite Uttar Pradesh Police and Rajasthan Police to the future such meetings.

Discussions on the best practices of participating states were also held and it was decided that mechanism to adopt each other’s best practices would be formed so as to increase police to police learning’s.

Speaking to mediapersons after the meeting, Haryana DGP Agrawal, who chaired it, informed that a detailed discussion among officers was held on several issues related to the drug problem and what more steps need to be taken to deal with the scourge more effectively.
“Several issues related to the drug problem which is a very serious issue were discussed.

A detailed discussion took place on what we are doing and what more should be done,” he said.

Several suggestions emerged during the meeting about dealing with this problem more effectively, he added.“Such a mechanism be implemented so that strict action be taken against drug smugglers and peddlers in this area,” he said. During the meeting, financial proceeds from drugs were also discussed, he said. “You all know there is a huge generation (in proceeds from drugs) and what should we do in this regard,” he said.There is a need to strengthen the mechanism of sharing information pertaining to drugs with each other, he noted.

The Haryana DGP said the good practices against the drug problem adopted by the participating states will be assimilated on one platform so as to replicate them.He said there were many other related issues which were also discussed. He stressed on taking action against some unscrupulous pharma companies in Himachal Pradesh. He said that in several incidents, the Punjab Police and the Border Security Force stopped smuggling of drugs and arms which came through drones from across the border in the last few days.

“If we say that it is completely stopped...we will be living in a fool’s paradise, if we think that we have ended it completely.... We have to be alert,” he said. Punjab’s ADGP Shukla said some drug smugglers have developed nexus with gangsters and terrorist organisations also. “We have arrived at a consensus to take certain steps which will definitely go a long way in reducing the smuggling,” he said.

Shukla said that Punjab shares 553 km border with Pakistan and drones from across the border carrying drugs and weapons have emerged as a new challenge.
“They are now using drones to smuggle drugs and weapons. We have had a number of meetings with BSF, Army authorities and we are trying our level best. We are taking all steps (to deal with it),” he said.