Drug menace fuelled by neighbouring country: Lt Guv
Joins a People’s Movement in Samba, calls for sustained counter efforts
Jammu: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday sounded a strong warning over the growing drug menace, linking it to cross-border narco-terror networks aimed at destabilising society and targeting the youth.
“This grave crisis of drugs was systematically fuelled by the neighbouring country to finance terrorism and create social breakdown,” he said while participating in a 100-day anti-drug campaign, ‘Nasha Mukt Abhiyan’, in Samba.
Calling the crisis a deliberate attempt to fuel terrorism and social breakdown, he urged strict enforcement of laws and a sustained, people-driven campaign to eliminate the threat.
Samba witnessed a massive gathering as people from all walks of life came together to support the drug-free campaign, pledging to eliminate the menace of drugs from society.
“I reiterated that this 100-day movement will inspire future generations and stand as proof that when people rise together, they can change history,” the LG said.
On April 11, Sinha had led a padyatra from M A Stadium to Parade Ground in the heart of Jammu to mark the beginning of the anti-drug campaign. He led rallies in different districts as part of the campaign over the past fortnight.
In a major crackdown across J&K over the past two weeks, authorities arrested scores of drug peddlers, including several kingpins, and demolished more than half a dozen residential properties linked to notorious traffickers.
The LG observed that continuous auditing of the drug-free J&K campaign is essential, and directed district authorities and other enforcement agencies to review weekly marches and programmes to ensure the movement yields results from identification and counselling to treatment and rehabilitation.
“For the next 85 days, we must sustain its energy, reach every home across Union territory and warn against the dangers of drugs. Participation, momentum, and energy are vital because drug addiction is not an individual’s problem; it is a social crisis,” Sinha said, assuring citizens that the administration will strike hard against drug networks.
“I assure citizens that we will strike hard against drug networks. Yet this fight cannot be won by law alone, it must be won within society, through awareness, cooperation, and collective effort. We are building a Jammu Kashmir where drugs have no place,” the Lieutenant Governor, said.
He said the 100-day drug-free J&K movement will inspire future generations and stand as proof that when people rise together, they can change history.
“Success in the next 85 days will not be measured by marches or slogans, but by how deeply the drug menace is cleaned out from villages and city neighborhoods. Weekly outcomes must be clear—how many people were rehabilitated, how many smugglers prosecuted, how many fake centers shut down, how many cases registered, how much contraband seized, and how many women’s committees formed in Panchayat’s and city wards,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
In his address, the Lieutenant Governor observed that continuous auditing of drug-free J&K campaign is essential. He said Deputy Commissioners, SSPs and other enforcement agencies must review weekly marches and programs to ensure this movement builds a complete chain of care- from identification and counseling to treatment, recovery, and rehabilitation.
“Now is the time to confront this challenge with full strength, applying the harshest law against those who conspire against society. For the next 85 days, we must sustain its energy, reach every home across Union Territory and warn against the dangers of drugs. Participation, momentum, and energy are vital, because drug addiction is not an individual’s problem, it is a social crisis,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
He also highlighted that the ongoing historic people’s movement is not a government order but a public resolve and now parents, elders are stepping out to spread awareness, teachers guiding students, and survivors sharing their stories openly to prevent others from falling into darkness.
“Jammu Kashmir is now illuminated with a new resolve against drugs. It is a flame of hope that will end the darkness, erase fear, and light the future. In these past 15 days, the transformation I have witnessed among people is nothing short of a miracle,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
On the occasion, the Lieutenant Governor also flagged off a bike rally and launched the Samba Cricket Premier League under Nasha Mukt Jammu Kashmir Abhiyaan.
