1. Home
2. Editorial

Drug smugglers active

Kashmir Times. Dated: 4/29/2014 3:50:06 PM

Recent seizures and arrests point to bigger malaise within society

A significant number of arrests by the police for smuggling of charas, poppy seeds, straw and opium in Jammu city and its adjoining areas during the past few days points towards a bigger malaise on this front. In fact the series of arrests and seizure of contraband items including narcotics drugs shows that there has been movement of such items in large numbers because, it is humanly impossible to catch hold of every courier of drugs. It also points to the fact that there is possibility of large number of people being involved in this racket that is operating freely and fearlessly in this part of the state while a large number of such drugs may be finding their way to the international market from Jammu and Kashmir itself. While this is an accepted fact that some parts of the drugs are grown and manufactured by some unscrupulous persons in different parts of Kashmir valley, there is a ready market in various parts of India for the gullible youth and other drug addicts. The law enforcing agencies have utterly failed in checking cultivation of such crops in Kashmir besides production of opium from poppy in various parts of the state. There is hardly any news of arrest of smugglers and seizure of such drugs in Kashmir valley except for the action taken against some cultivators of this crop. Even on the face value of arrests and seizure there is still a large number smugglers, who might be escaping the vigilant eye of the police in Jammu city. Apart from this, the present phenomenon also points to the fact that trans-border smugglers are also active and carrying out their spurious trade through various parts of Jammu. It is well known that these smugglers bring in large quantities of opium, hashish and brown sugar from Pakistan and Afghanistan for sale within India and other countries. Stringent action needs to be taken against such offenders to create a deterrent for such activities.