Gujarat registered 100 per cent growth in drug trafficking
in 2014, highest in the country, surging past New Delhi, Maharashtra, Goa,
Karnataka and Arunachal Pradesh. Despite such a damning figure, Gujarat NCB has
failed miserably in checking drug abuse on college campuses in the city.
So far, NCB has not arrested a single student found to be
involved in drug abuse or supply, claiming the laws are harsh and the minimum
prison term is one year, enough to ruin the student’s career.
While last December NCB had announced that it will reveal
the names of repeat offenders, the fact is it has been playing the big daddy
and letting off students with just a warning.
The lax attitude is despite NCB’s zonal director Hariom
Gandhi stating on record, “The maximum number of drug trafficking cases are
reported from Surat, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Jamnagar and Gandhinagar where the
migration from other states is high.”
ALL TALK, NO ACTION
Why is then the NCB not pulling up its socks and taking
strict action against offenders? “According to our information, students use
these drugs not only outside the campus but also inside. Our aim is not to take
punitive action against the students since this would affect their future. So,
we do not arrest them. But we do warn them. In fact, we have even asked the
police to follow the same approach,” said Gandhi. Asked how many such students
has issued a warning to, he said, “About 20-25 in three years.”
Gujarat seized 3,592 kg of contraband in 2014 as against
1,613 kg in 2013, according to a reply given by Minister of State for Home
Affairs Haribhai Chaudhary in the Lok Sabha. While NCB sleuths admit that
students in almost every other institute are involved in consumption and supply
of drugs, refraining from making arrests only allows the illegal business to
thrive.
This, even as deaddiction centres in the city receive about
40 patients, on an average, from college campuses. “Every month we receive 32
to 50 patients from premier institutes. Of these more than 80 per cent are men
who are mostly addicted to ganja. In the past two years, the cases have surged
by 20-30 per cent,” said Dr Keyur Panchal of SAL Deaddiction Centre.
NO RAIDS HELD BY NCB
NCB’s official website states that any officer from the
department has the power to carry out ‘search, seizure and arrest without
warrant’. However, NCB has not conducted raids in campuses so far. “Mainly, the
hostel wardens conduct the raids and confiscate the drugs. They usually do not
inform the NCB about it,” he said.
NCBs ACTIVE IN
MUMBAI, GOA
Elsewhere in the country, the NCB has been quite active in
conducting raids on campuses and bringing the offenders to book. Mumbai,
Bangalore and Goa follow more stringent procedures, including arrest of
students, to curb the menace. On March 10, Maharashtra NCB arrested two Pune
engineering students from Bandra for possession of Mephedrone, also called meow
meow.
These days new drugs like meow meow and LSD that were not known
earlier, are making way into the city. “People get experimental when they are
bored of taking the same drugs repeatedly. The students who come from other
states to study in the city bring in the new drugs with them,” said Gandhi.
Asked whether NCB has arrested any student who works as a
drug carrier, he said, “Even if we find such a person, we will not warn him.
Instead, we will keep a watch on him to get to the root of the nexus.”
Dr Rajendra Anand, CEO and head of deaddiction centre at
Kanoria Hospital, said, “Those involved in drug abuse are not arrested even
though it is a criminal activity. The cops are quite lenient in this matter
because it is considered as a psychological disorder. However, after the
patient recovers, the cops do not conduct questioning in the proper manner.”
NCB orientation session at NID
Officials of National Institute of Design (NID) met NCB
sleuths on Wednesday to discuss on measures to check substance abuse among
students.
“We met some senior faculty members to discuss about
drug-related issues among students. They have said that they would take
precautionary measures to check drug abuse on their campus,” said Hariom
Gandhi, zonal head of Narcotics Control Bureau.
NID Director Pradyumna Vyas said, “We are vigilant about the
issue. Primarily, we have decided to have an orientation session with NCB
officials to make students aware of the ill-effects of drug abuse.”
NCB had arrested one person with 3 kg charas from Geeta Mandir
on May 9. NCB had claimed that the accused said during interrogation that part
of it was to be supplied to NID. Defending the institute then, Vyas had said,
“It is vacation right now and there are no students on campus. They will return
only on July 20.” Reacting to this, Gandhi said, “Though it is vacation time at
the institute, students do visit the campus.”
ENDS
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