Chandigarh: Union home minister Amit Shah said the Centre stands shoulder to shoulder with Punjab in its fight against drugs as being a border state the drug problem was greater in Punjab and, therefore, more effort will have to be made.
“We will also set up a forensic lab in Amritsar as well as open a centre of the NCB which will provide training,” he said while addressing the National Conference on ‘Drug Trafficking and National Security’ in Chandigarh.
“To free the youth of Punjab from drugs, we are with Punjab in whatever the state requires,” he said, assuring that the Centre will provide strong support to Punjab's anti-drug fight under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi.
In 2014, when Modi became the Prime Minister, the government adopted the policy of zero-tolerance against drugs, and gradually by removing shortcomings in the system, it has made the fight against drugs a fast-paced battle, he said.
“Today for the first time after Independence, with a clear direction and fast pace, we have been able to carry forward the fight against drugs, its results are also being seen. Drugs have an adverse effect on the security of the individual, society, economy, and country, that is why it is necessary to uproot them with firmness,” he added.
He said that no healthy, prosperous, capable and safe nation can achieve its goals without adopting a zero-tolerance policy against drug trafficking. Drug smuggling and its spread is very dangerous for any society. When drug smuggling spreads it hollows out generations, he said.
Shah also said that in the fight against drugs, the ministry of home affairs has gone ahead with a multi-pronged approach, has undertaken several administrative reforms and also developed new methods besides taking a proactive approach to engage the states. He added that the ministry had also created a coordination mechanism in which there should be no loophole anywhere till the district level through NCORD (Narco Coordination Centre).
