Chandigarh
Seized drugs including 659 kg heroin valued at Rs 1,318 crore in the international market were destroyed by the Punjab government on the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on Saturday.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh reiterated his demand for a national drug policy to tackle the menace of drugs, according to an official statement issued here. Besides heroin, other narcotics which were destroyed included 3,000 kg of poppy husk, pills/capsules worth Rs 5.8 crore, 166 kg ganja, and 5 kg charas, it said.
Singh digitally launched the "live destruction" in Amritsar carried out by a special team led by Commissioner of Police (Amritsar) Sukhchain Singh Gill, it added.
Singh also underlined the need for better collaboration between the special task force, police and Intelligence wing to eliminate drugs from the state.
Calling for the support of all stakeholders to fight the drug menace, which he termed a global problem, the chief minister claimed the neighbouring states of Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi had agreed to put in place an effective mechanism for tackling drug smuggling, but no significant progress has been made.