On Friday (Feb 14) Police seized six kg of narcotics, believed to be high-grade heroin worth over Rs 30 crore in the international market, from a village near the Line of Control in Rajouri district. As per Police, the recovery from Sair Bhawani village in the Nowshera sector was made on the disclosure of the arrested kingpin of the racket Jaswinder Kumar alias Sonu, a resident of Lamberi who was arrested 10 days ago following an investigation of a case registered last year. Two more accused, Ashok Kumar and Sanjay Kumar of Sair Bhawani, were also arrested during the operation, taking the total number of those arrested to five and the recoveries to 11.3 kg of narcotics. Police further said that the accused revealed that they were getting heroin smuggled into India from Pakistan-based operatives.
In these columns we have repeatedly been discussing about drug trafficking and abuse. Unfortunately, the menace continues unabated. Not a single day passes when the local media doesn’t report about arrest of some drug peddlers somewhere in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The frequent reportage indicates that the menace is wide spread and though the daily reports may not be attracting public eye but it undoubtedly speaks volumes about the rot that the society is face to face with. Police in J&K has been seizing homegrown charas and fuki besides heroin and other deadly drugs. Those involved in such kind of nefarious businesses are the worst enemies of the people of J&K. It goes without saying that when a place is used as a route to smuggle drugs, the people of that place, particularly the youths never remain untouched by the menace and that is why we have been witnessing growing number of drug addicts here.
Those who are dealing with this gory trade are the merchants of death who need to be dealt with sternly. It is satisfactory to note that the government is working on the issue seriously and JK Police too has been working tirelessly to deal with the issue. It is because of these efforts that huge quantities of contraband drugs are being seized almost every day. Though a lot is being written and said about the issue and the concerned government agencies are trying their best to help the addicts to overcome the menace and start their lives afresh, the menace continues to grow in size with every passing day. Fact of the matter is that drug trafficking and abuse can’t be dealt only with official machinery, few social organization and doctors alone. It needs a strong and collective response from the citizenry.
It is high time that people wake up to this disaster in the making and fight the battle against drug trafficking. Religious leaders, both in Kashmir and Jammu, can play a vital role in fighting this battle. The mohalla and village elders too need to play their role. As responsible citizens they should keep an eye on their respective areas and if they find someone involved in such crimes, they should take help from law enforcing agencies to stop the crime.
