NEW DELHI: The Centre has adopted a zero-tolerance policy towards narcotics and it is showing results now, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said in Chandigarh on Saturday. Shah said when Narendra Modi became Prime Minister in 2014, the government adopted a zero-tolerance policy toward drugs. He said that drugs adversely impact the younger generation and stressed that the government was committed to eliminating them. “We have to weed it out completely,’’ he said.
After inaugurating a conference on drug trafficking and national security, Shah said the Centre would set up a forensic laboratory in Amritsar and a Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) office. He also spoke about exclusive fast-track courts for cases dealing with drugs. Shah assured the Punjab government of complete support from the Modi government in its fight against drugs.
“Today Punjab CM is here. Everyone is saying the drug problem is more in Punjab. It is a border state and if the problem is more, then we will have to make more efforts. If the state government allots land, the Centre will set up a forensics lab in Amritsar and a centre of NCB for training purposes,” he said. There has been a 200 per cent increase in the number of cases registered and a 260 per cent rise in arrests from 2014 to 2021, Shah said.