J&K: Public Safety Act slapped on arrested drug peddlers, contraband recovered

By Basharat Rashid*
In 2020, Jammu and Kashmir Police in Awantipora district played a vital role in curbing the drug menace throughout the year, and arrested more than hundred drug peddlers, which happened for the first time in the region.The drug peddlers were arrested from the different parts of Awantipora and contraband substances were recovered from their possession, following which cases were registered, while several slapped with Public Safety Act (PSA).
As per the official figures, 109 drug peddlers were arrested in total, in which cases were registered against 55, and 08 peddlers lodged under PSA. Besides that, Bung and poppy cultivation were destroyed on more than three hundred kanals of land, which was used to produce drugs.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Awantipora,Tahir Saleem Khan told this journalist that as compared to previous years, police in Awantipora managed to arrest more people who were involving in drug peddling.He said that from the year 2014 to 2019, the highest number of arrestees were 43, in the year 2016, with 25 cases, and 4 PSAs, “which clearly indicates that 2020 has break all the records with more than double figures than any year since 2014.”
He appreciated his team for doing this commendable job and hailed the contribution of every policeman in curbing the drug related activities in the whole police district. In a press conference held at Awantipora a few days back, Khan said that his team had earlier destroyed bung and poppy cultivation in many places, following which major crackdown on drug peddlers began, which still continues.
He said that there is clear message to the drug peddlers that Awantipora police is committed to eradicate the drug menace throughout the district, and assured quick and more stringent action against the persons involved in drug peddling. Khan however believed that role of parents to educate their children is more important than the police action later, and appealed parents to look after their children, for their day to day activities, to save them from drugs.
Sub Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Awantipora, Ajaz Choudhary was heading the police teams throughout the year, to ensure crackdown on drug peddlers comprehensively. Talking to this journalist, DySP Ajaz Choudhary said that Awantipora police left no stone unturned to curb the drug menace and worked day and night in 2020 to book peddlers under NDPS and PSAs. He said that “people should take care of their wards and should not let them free, as they usually involve in drugs, when they meet bad companies around.”
Choudhary said that drug peddlers usually target the children of rich families and give them greed of getting free drugs, following which children (teenagers) get addicted and start paying when they get no drugs on time. He believed that proper parental care and awareness programmes in the schools may help more in curbing the drug menace and uproot it completely.

Awantipora police recently organised an anti-drug rally, which was attended by the locals of the nearby areas as well, who all hailed the initiative of the police to uproot drugs from the region. A local namely Ghulam Mohammad Parray has said that “drugs are more dangerous than coronavirus pandemic, which need to be eradicated not only in Awantipora, but in other districts as well.”
He appreciated the Awantipora police and requested the police officials of other places to adopt the same way in order to end drug menace from the Kashmir valley. “Awantipora police worked hard to end drug menace in all the places here. Drugs are more dangerous than corona-virus, and its end is the need of hour. Police in other districts should adopt the same way to uproot and end drug menace,” Parray said.
Aadil Afroz, another resident told this journalist that police has done a marvellous job by taking stern action against the drug peddlers, which helped the society to rescue the youth from evils. He congratulated the police team particularly SDPO Awantipora Ajaz Choudhary, SSP Awantipora Tahir Saleem Khan, SHO Younis Khan and the whole team of Awantipora for taking pragmatic steps to curb drug menace in the district.
It’s pertinent to mention here that Awantipora police has been organising sports events and cultural programmes as well, side by side, ‘with the motive to inculcate skills among the new generation, so that they may stay away from drug related activities and make a good future for them.’
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*Journalist based in Kashmir