Mumbai: Byculla residents, who are grappling with an epidemic of drug peddling and substance abuse in the area, are working with the local police in a community policing project to reduce a menace that puts their youth at risk.
In the last two months, members of the Byculla Mumbai Residents Association (BMRA) have been meeting officers at the Agripada police station regularly to participate in the area's policing to reduce drug use-related crime.
Byculla-Madanpura, with a large floating population consisting of hawkers and workers from the small industrial units, is at the centre of the problem. Nilofer Shaikh, vice-president of BMRA said that residents wrote to the municipal corporation, met the local deputy commissioner of police and attended the 'janata durbars' that are held by the Mumbai's commissioner of police, to tell the police about the severity of the issue. Shaikh said that she suspects that the drug peddling issue is linked to the problem of illegal hawkers who occupy the footpaths and roads. "Sale of drugs will not stop until the number of hawkers are not controlled," stated Shaikh, who added that Jhula Maidan, a historic ground in the locality, is the hub of the drug trade. “We are concerned about the drug peddlers around the ground because this is where our kids come to play.”
Hawkins outside Jhula Maidan |
Another resident said that disputes between drug peddlers escalate into noisy fights. “They routinely create ruckus near my building. The spaces around Jhula Maidan, the Madanpura vocational school, and the YMCA gymnasium are places where they congregate. The drug sellers disguise themselves as hawkers and hide the drugs in their hawking ware when the police come for inspection,” the resident said.
Cyril Dara, Argipada resident and secretary of BMRA, said that hawkers are seen sitting on the footpaths late into the night. "They are selling drugs under the cover of hawking. The drug problem is related to illegal hawking," said Dara.
Sanjay Nale, senior Inspector of Agripada police station, said that in the 10-month period from January 2025, the police have registered 150 cases of drug consumption – one every second day. There have been 13 cases of peddlers accused of possessing drugs. “While the police have been working on eradicating the problem for the last one year, we have involved the local residents in our detection work in the last one month. The residents help us in identifying areas where the suspects are. I think the programme is yielding results,” said Nale who added that results of the programme should be visible in a few months.
Shaikh said that there is a drastic change in the streets after the community policing project started. “The hawkers are still there, but their numbers are now manageable. Earlier, they were rude to residents when they complained. Now, they are afraid that we will complain to the police,” said Shaikh.
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