Northern states unite against drug menace, to set up secretariat in P’kula
CMS of Punjab, Haryana, HP, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Rajasthan will meet every six months to monitor the progress of joint strategy against drugs, while officers will meet every 3 months
There must be restrictions on drug cultivation and better mechanisms to prevent diversion to the neighbouring states where illicit plantation takes place. CAPT AMARINDER SINGH, Punjab chief minister
CHANDIGARH: In fight against narcotic drugs, northern states, on Monday, unanimously decided to set up a common/central secretariat, to be based at Panchkula in Haryana, for data and information sharing, which is critical to the joint action.
The states that have joined hands are Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi and Rajasthan as also the Union Territory of Chandigarh.
The chief ministers will meet every six months to monitor the progress of the joint strategy against drugs, while officers will meet every three months. Nodal officers will be deputed by each of the states to coordinate in the sharing process, the chief ministers decided at a ‘Regional Conference on Drugs – Challenges and Strategies’, convened in Chandigarh to discuss and formulate a joint strategy to fight the drug menace.
Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh, Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar and Uttarakhand chief minister TS Rawat attended the conference. Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur participated through video conference as he was unable to land in the city due to unfavourable weather.
It was also decided to invite Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers to join the implementation of the antidrug strategy, the chief ministers said at a press conference later.
AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS IN SCHOOLS
It was also decided that the states would launch a major awareness campaign in schools to engage youth in sports and other activities at the village level.
Skill development of youth will also be undertaken on a major scale.
Senior civil and police officers from these states, as well as Rajasthan, Delhi and Chandigarh, were also present at the meeting to evolve a joint strategy against drugs, and overcoming political and regional divides.
A Punjab government press statement said on chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh’s proposal, the CMS decided to meet every six months to monitor the progress of the joint strategy against drugs.
To ensure this, a meeting will be held once every quarter to be chaired by the chief secretary/ DGP of the states concerned. SSPS of adjoining districts of states will also coordinate daily.
During the meeting, Amarinder also proposed a regional cooperative framework of northern states to institutionalise interstate and inter-agency coordination to deal with the menace of drugs.
He also suggested that all the affected states approach the Centre for funds for drug prevention, which could be arranged through the 21 departments of the Central government.
“There must be restrictions on drug plantations and better mechanisms to prevent diversion to the neighbouring states where illicit cultivation takes place,” he added.
Haryana chief minister Khattar said verification of foreign students sponsored by NGOS should be done through the ministry of human resource development.
Rajasthan additional chief secretary admitted there was some diversion of opium being produced legitimately in the state, in addition to the manufacture of low quality heroin and some synthetic drugs.
Uttarakhand chief minister expressed concern over the fact that women were also getting increasingly trapped in drug abuse.
Himachal chief minister said the state was already working closely with the Punjab Police to crack down on smuggling of drugs through joint operations.
The Delhi Police crime branch stressed the need for data and information sharing among all the states on a priority.
WHEN IT ALL BEGAN
A group of Dalits and few uppercaste youths had entered into a scuffle on June 15 last year on the issue of drawing water from a common handpump.
The family members of those Dalits had also started a dharna in front of the deputy commissioner’s (DC’S) office demanding strict action against the “accused”.
Even the Punjab and Haryana High Court had appointed a court commissioner, who visited Bhatla village to assess the ground reality on June 17, 2018.
The Dalit families led by Bhatla Dalit Sangharsh Samiti had told the court commissioner that the local administration and police were not investigating the case “properly”.
The court commissioner, assistant advocate general Deepak Balyan, had recorded the statements of villagers belonging to Dalit and other communities.
While talking to HT, Kalsan, who is also the coordinator of National Alliance for Dalit Human Rights, said, “The BJP government never did anything for the Dalits and on Monday, 300 families of Bhatla converted to Buddhism.
The Dalit families of this village have been facing social boycott