60-day action plan underway to eliminate drug hotspots; focus on enforcement, rehabilitation, awareness and village development
Kapurthala, November 6: Deputy Commissioner Akash Bansal and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Gaurav Toora on Friday reiterated that coordinated efforts by the civil and police administration, in close collaboration with Village Defence Committees (VDCs), will play a vital role in curbing the drug menace, with joint initiatives beginning to yield encouraging results in 15 identified drug hotspots across the district.
Presiding over a meeting with heads of various departments, VDC members and sarpanches of the identified drug hotspots, the Deputy Commissioner and SSP reviewed the progress of ongoing activities. They said that intensified efforts, including enforcement drives, awareness campaigns, rehabilitation, infrastructure development, installation of streetlights and CCTV cameras, job and loan camps, shifting drug addicts to rehabilitation centers and reclaiming abandoned places being used for drug consumption, were being undertaken in these areas. They appreciated the response being received from local residents.
They directed the SDMs and DSPs, who participated in the meeting virtually, to further accelerate ground-level activities related to awareness, enforcement and development. They emphasized that all departments must work with commitment to achieve the government’s 60-day target of removing the tag of drug hotspots from these 15 villages. They informed that playgrounds would soon be developed in the identified villages to channelize the energy of youth towards sports and other constructive activities as the lands had been identified in these villages. Self-help groups are also being formed, while regular job and loan camps are being organized to help drug-affected families secure employment opportunities and financial assistance to rebuild their lives.
The Deputy Commissioner and SSP further said that the installation of streetlights and CCTV cameras in these villages would commence shortly. Drug addicts from the identified hotspots were also being motivated and shifted to rehabilitation centers to ensure proper treatment and support. They asked all departmental officers to extend wholehearted support to the VDC members in the initiatives. They emphasized that only collective and sustained efforts by the administration, police and people could completely eliminate the drug menace from these hotspots. They added that the Punjab Government was vigorously implementing its ‘Yudh Nasheya Virudh’ campaign to eradicate the drug menace from the state and safeguard the future of its youth.
Prominent among those present at the meeting included DDPO Gurpartap Singh, Yudh Nasheya Virudh District Coordinator Seema Rana and other officials.
