Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said that under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the policy of zero tolerance against narcotics adopted by the Ministry of Home Affairs is showing positive results.

In his message on the “International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking,” the Home Minister said: “It is a matter of great pleasure that this time also the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) is organizing ‘Nasha Mukt Pakhwada’ at all India level.”

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“One of the main pillars of the Government policy is the ‘Whole of Government Approach’ of the Modi Government, in which the coordination of different departments makes the policy more effective,” he said.

“It is our resolve that we will not allow the narcotics trade in India, nor will we allow drugs to be routed to the world through India. In this campaign against drugs, all major agencies of the country, especially the “Narcotics Control Bureau” are continuously fighting this war,” he said.

To strengthen this campaign, the Ministry of Home Affairs established NCORD in 2019, while the Anti Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) was formed in the police department of every state. The first national conference of ANTF was held in April 2023 in Delhi.

Shah said that the campaign against the misuse and side effects of drugs is being carried out on a war footing at the national level through appropriate forums. The effect of the comprehensive and coordinated fight against drugs is that while drugs worth Rs 768 crore were seized in 2006-13, the seizures increased almost 30 times to Rs 22,000 crore in 2014-22.

As many as 181 per cent additional cases have been registered against drug peddlers in comparison to the earlier period. This shows the commitment of the Modi government towards a drug free India, he said.

“We also launched a destruction campaign to prevent re-use of seized drugs in June 2022, under this campaign around six lakh kgs of seized narcotics have been destroyed across the country so far,” he said.

The Home Minister said that whether it is about destroying the drug cultivation or spreading public awareness, the Ministry of Home Affairs in coordination with all institutions and States, is making every possible effort, for a “drug free India,” but this battle cannot be won without people’s participation.

“On this occasion, I appeal to all countrymen to keep themselves and their families away from drugs. Drugs not only make the young generation and society hollow, but the money earned from its smuggling is used against the security of the country,” he said.

“I appeal to the people to take an active part in this war against its misuse and inform the security agencies about the drug-trade taking place around them,” he said.

The Home Minister said that “I am sure that with collective efforts, we all will be able to root out the problem of drugs and achieve our goal of “Drugs-free India.”