War against drugs
Punjab’s drug menace is growing in
size. Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh launched his much-anticipated war on drugs by ordering mandatory drug
tests for all government employees, including the police. It is very necessary to curb the pervasive
drug menace especially for someone
who promised to wipe out drugs from the State within a month of being elected.
The decision of the Punjab Cabinet
to recommend the death penalty to drug-peddlers does not have enough
supporters. What is required is a comprehensive war on drugs fought on several
fronts. The challenges faced by the State are huge. As many as two-thirds of
all households in Punjab have a drug addict in their midst. Punjab’s prisons
are overcrowded with drug-users and peddlers, and its streets and farms witness
the easy availability of narcotics and opiates. The drugs, whether it is opium
or heroin, make an easy and assisted entrance into Punjab from the Golden
Crescent (Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan), and synthetic drugs are thought to come
in via Himachal Pradesh. That means those guarding Punjab’s 553-km border with
Pakistan is a must.
The government should make sure
that the border is properly barred to the flow of narcotic substances. This is
a national problem as a substantial portion of the drugs that land in Punjab
make their way to the rest of the country. Given the links between drugs and
terror, this poses a national security threat.
Threatening with death penalty on
almost every grave offence may not solve problems. Political will is crucial to
analyze the cause and take steps to curb purchase and sale of drugs. Law
enforcement to counter 'illicit drug trafficking' such as narcotic drugs,
psychotropic substances which are sold on Internet (called “Darknets”) could be
also taken for consideration.
What Punjab Government is doing is
a good step. Rest lies with the Family. In order to eliminate this menace fully
Parent-Child attachment, Supportive parenting shall be encouraged.
When somebody pointed out drug
menace in Punjab all opposition were criticising and making politics out of it. The decision
taken by Punjab government is good. Many
harsh steps had been taken in past years related to drug addiction and its
menace case. To reduce the ill-effect of drug the foremost important thing is
that each and every individual will have to make themselves aware of the harms
caused by drug. One should not forget the havoc caused by death of more than 20
person in Punjab due to drug. On the other hand the steps announced by the
government may be playing to the gallery. But in spite of this the positive
consequences of the steps taken cannot be underpinned. There is possibility
that number of cases reporting drug menace will reduce in coming days.
It is a menace that has to be
eradicated, sooner the better before it envelops the entire states and
ultimately the country. The mis-steps must be identified and not applied. The
powers that be including the administrative paraphernalia, with more than a sprinkling
of criminalised elements should first wake up and say the buck stops here. In
no way should the leaders tolerate the peddlers or the addicts however closer
they may be to them. Zero tolerance is a must to eradicate this deadly menace. Eternal
vigilance is the price of liberty. It is high time that the price is paid to
win the prize --Drug free country.
The Chief Minister deserves
appreciation for taking serious steps to extricate the State from the cruel
hands of drug addiction. His mission must be on two folds. One to persuade
people not to use drugs and to severely punish the culprits not abiding the
drug prevention laws. The second one is plugging the holes of supply of
norcotic drugs from nearest countries and the local suppliers of the drugs. Punjab
is an excellent agro state producing refined varieties of wheat. But the drug
devil snatches the good name. Its vulnerability with Pakistan border is an
eternal problem and let the polity prevent drugs with persuasion and
punishment.
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