Northeastern States to roll out joint anti-drug strategy within 10 days

Police forces across the northeastern States are finalising a coordinated strategy to crack down on drug trafficking, with the mechanism expected to become operational within the next 10 days, Nagaland Director General of Police Rupin Sharma said on Friday, June 26.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event marking the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Sharma said Directors General of Police and heads of anti-narcotics task forces from all northeastern States had recently met to formulate a common strategy against drug trafficking networks operating across the region.

"In the past two weeks, all the DGPs of North East states and the anti-narcotics task force heads have come together. We are trying to develop a common concerted strategy for checking drug trafficking," Sharma said.

He said the proposed mechanism would strengthen coordination among law enforcement agencies and make it more difficult for drug traffickers to move narcotic substances across State borders.

According to Sharma, traffickers transporting drugs from Mizoram or Manipur to Nagaland would face coordinated surveillance not only in Nagaland but also in Assam and other neighbouring States. Likewise, those attempting to procure narcotics from Assam, Nagaland or Manipur would come under closer scrutiny through enhanced inter-State coordination.

"The strategy is already being made, but it will take concrete shape in the next 10 days or so, and we will see better results in future," he said.

On the fight against drug abuse, Sharma said progress had been made in parts of Nagaland but stressed that tackling the menace required the participation of society as a whole and could not be left to the police alone.

He also said the Nagaland Police planned to install facial recognition and surveillance cameras, along with CCTV systems, in major towns to improve women's safety and help deter crimes in public places.

Sharma urged victims of sexual assault and their families to report offences to the police, saying an increase in reporting reflected growing public confidence in law enforcement agencies.