New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday chaired a regional conference on ‘Drugs Trafficking and National Security’ here even as over 1,44,000 kilograms of drugs were destroyed in various parts of the country by NCB, in coordination with ANTFs of all states.
The narcotics destruction process was carried out in various cities, with Shah virtually supervising the operation from New Delhi via video-conferencing, a PIB release informed.
The drugs which were destroyed included 6,590 kg seized by the Narcotics Control Bureau’s (NCB) Hyderabad unit, 822 kg seized by the Indore unit and 356 kg seized by the Jammu unit.
Along with this, various state law enforcement agencies also destroyed drugs totaling 1,486 kg in Assam, 229 kg in Chandigarh, 25 kg in Goa, 4,277 kg in Gujarat, 2,458 kg in Haryana, 4,069 kg in Jammu and Kashmir, 1,03,884 kg in Madhya Pradesh, 159 kg in Maharashtra, 1,803 kg in Tripura, and 4,049 kg in Uttar Pradesh.
The central government has adopted a zero-tolerance policy against narcotics under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership in order to create a drug-free India, an official statement said.
It said from June 1, 2022 to July 15, 2023, all regional units of the NCB and state anti-narcotics task forces destroyed approximately 8,76,554 kg of seized drugs valued at approximately Rs 9,580 crore — more than 11 times the target.
With the drug destruction on Monday, the total amount of drugs destroyed in a single year will be around 10 lakh kilograms. The total value of these drugs is around Rs 12,000 crore.
The official release stated that in order to realise the dream of a drug-free India, this campaign of drug destruction will continue actively and with the same zeal.
“In order to realize Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of a Drugs-free India, this campaign of destruction of drugs will continue actively, with the same zeal,” added the MHA.
Pertinently, Chief Ministers of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Uttarakhand, Governor of Punjab and Administrator of Chandigarh, Lieutenant Governors of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Delhi attended the conference.
The Union Home Secretary, Director General of NCB, and senior officials from various security agencies and related ministries and departments of Government of India also attended the conference.
In his address, Amit Shah said that in a country like India, drug trafficking and their usage not only ruins the future generations, but also affects national security.
He said that the Ministry of Home Affairs is continuously running a campaign against drugs through the meetings of regional conferences and these meetings are being held to review them and make timely changes in our policies based on the feedback.
Union Home Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target the ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ that India and its youth should become drug-free by the time the centenary of the country’s independence is celebrated.
“The aim of the Modi government is to create such an India where not even a single youth is addicted to drugs and to achieve this it is necessary for the states and the centre both to work together,” Shah said.
