Stop welfare benefits to repeat drug traffickers: Narcotics control bureau
Proposed move comes four days after CM Nayab Singh Saini directed officials to draft a plan barring family members of repeat offenders, gangsters, from availing government benefits.
Haryana State Narcotics Control Bureau (HSNCB) on Saturday urged the state government to withdraw all welfare scheme benefits from 860 identified habitual drug traffickers who are facing three or more cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act in the past 10 years.
This recommendation, sent to the chief secretary on Saturday, is part of a multi-pronged strategy against drug menace currently being implemented by the bureau in coordination with the Haryana Police. Of the 860 identified traffickers, about 720 are out of jail at present.
According to the HSNCB, the proposed action will not only strengthen the state's fight against drug abuse but also send a strong message of accountability and zero tolerance.
The proposed move comes just four days after chief minister Nayab Singh Saini directed officials to draft a plan barring the family members of repeat offenders, gangsters involved in murder, and other heinous crimes, and those booked under the POCSO Act from availing government benefits.
Expressing concern over the recurring nature of such crimes on May 20 in a meeting on law and order, the chief minister stressed the need for stringent measures to deter offenders.
'The battle against drugs cannot be won by the police alone. We need the public's support to identify and isolate those who poison our society,' said director general of police (DGP-HSNCB) OP Singh.
'The proposal to revoke welfare benefits aims to drive home the seriousness of the issue and discourage others from entering the drug trade. The government's welfare schemes are meant for those in need, and not for those who profit from spreading addiction and crime.'
Describing these identified habitual drug offenders as 'enemies of society', the HSNCB has asked the government that 'it is essential' that the state's resources are not 'extended to support their lifestyles while they continue to engage in activities that destroy lives.'
The HSNCB has stated that the exercise for identification, verification, and exclusion of these 860 individuals from beneficiary lists should be started and that necessary instructions be issued to concerned departments to examine the legal framework for implementing this proposal.
The HSNCB has said that these identified individuals have continued to engage in drug trafficking despite repeated arrests and legal action. 'Their activities pose a grave threat to the future of our youth and the social fabric of our communities,' reads the HSNCB letter.
Recently, the bureau had circulated to all field units a 'live, dynamic list of 860 high-profile drug smugglers' accompanied by strict orders for targeted enforcement. Orders were issued to detain repeat offenders under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act that allows preventive detention of up to one year without trial.
Meanwhile, on Saturday while recommending that the benefits of all government welfare schemes be discontinued for these offenders, the HSNCB said: 'This step would serve as an additional layer of deterrence, reinforcing the message that repeated engagement in narcotic activities will result in severe social, legal, and financial consequences.'
A senior official of the bureau said that this recommendation is one of several aggressive steps the Haryana Police have started to curb drug trafficking and protect the future of the state's youth.
In the last three years, 87 high-profile traffickers have been detained for a year under the preventive detention provision of the PIT-NDPS Act, a law reserved for the most persistent offenders.
As per HSNCB records, the authorities have also attached properties worth more than ₹55 crore belonging to over 100 known traffickers. 'These assets, often amassed through illegal drug profits, are being seized as part of a focused financial crackdown,' the official said, pointing out that illegal encroachments linked to drug traffickers are being identified and swiftly removed.
'The aim is to strip them not just of money, but of influence and physical territory as well. These individuals are enemies of society. They deserve no mercy,' said an official from the Bureau, emphasising the department's zero-tolerance approach.
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