ADGP (Crime) MK Aggarwal, who leads the state's anti-drug campaign, on reasons for the recent high-profile crackdown on drugs.
Published Aug 12, 2022 | 5:50 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 13, 2022 | 12:26 PM
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin was on Wednesday, 11 August, 2022, handed a certificate by the Asia Book of Records after 30 lakh children across schools and colleges in the state took an anti-drug oath. (CMOTamilnadu/Twitter)
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin administered an anti-drug oath on Thursday, 11 August, to 30 lakh students across the state — the largest ever anti-drug awareness outreach in the world.
He also announced a slew of measures to curb the use of drugs in the state: A toll-free number for leads, appointment of a Narcotics Intelligence Bureau (NIB) DSP in every district, stepping up vigil at state borders, public expose of kingpins and those involved in the drug trade, and invoking stringent provisions in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
“Don’t think I’m a soft chief minister. I’m soft only towards honest people. For those who do wrong, especially those facilitating the drug trade, I will become a dictator for them,” was Stalin’s stern warning at a meeting with senior officials.
South First spoke to Additional Director General of Police (Crime) Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, who has been at the forefront of the Tamil Nadu Police’s Drive Against Drugs (DAD) campaign, to understand the reasons behind the high-profile crackdown on drugs in the state. Excerpts from the interview:
Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal IPS presenting the certificate of anti-drugs pledge to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin. (copmahesh1994/Twitter)
Q. The DAD campaign has been going on for a while now. What explains this renewed interest in pushing for an anti-drug awareness campaign?
A: Tamil Nadu has been performing well in terms of controlling the flow of drugs. If you look at the national survey, we are doing much better compared to other states.
However, it is not a question of comparative performance. It is about whether drugs are available in the state.
The chief minister’s vision is a drug-free Tamil Nadu. That’s why we are seeing a renewed vigour in this area.
We have been focusing on the enforcement of the NDPS Act to control the supply of drugs. To a large extent, we have been successful.
However, if we have to ensure a drug-free Tamil Nadu, we should also focus on the demand side. That is why we have launched a massive awareness campaign.
It is definitely an ambitious target, but it is possible to achieve it with everyone’s cooperation.
Q: How widespread and alarming is the drug situation in Tamil Nadu right now?
A: Like I said, if you look at the national survey, Tamil Nadu is performing well. But we are not satisfied with just that. Why should even a single family be affected due to drugs?
It is a question of sensitivity. If the plight of even a single family or few families due to drug-related problems alarms you or concerns you, then the situation is alarming.
It is concerning as long as drugs are prevalent to even the smallest extent in society.
Q: Though we have seen reports about the police department cracking down on small-time drug peddlers, what about the big fish? How many of them have been caught?
A: Over the past year, we have been focusing on catching the big fish (drug lords). Our strategy has been to establish and bust the forward and backward links. From June 2021 to June 2022, we seized 29,000 kg of ganja (marijuana).
We have also started financial investigations into the drug trade. Basically, the NDPS Act has provisions to freeze the assets of narcotic offenders.
In the last six months, we have carried out financial investigations in 50 cases relating to the top guys involved in this illegal trade. The movable and immovable properties of the accused have been frozen. If they are convicted, these will be confiscated.
For some people, jail is a matter of stigma and acts as a deterrent. For others, jail may not have a deterrence value, but the freezing of assets deters them as they won’t be able to enjoy the wealth or the proceeds of their crime.
Hence, the financial investigation into such cases assumes significance. It is a holistic approach that we have been adopting to strike at the illegal drug trade in Tamil Nadu.
Q: One of the most concerning aspects is how drugs are being sold close to schools and colleges, making youngsters vulnerable to their dangers. How is the department dealing with this issue?
A: In the last few months, we carried out focused raids and checks near schools and colleges. What you mentioned is also one of the reasons why the focus of our new campaign targets students. We want to create awareness among them.
Anti-drug clubs are being set up in every educational institution for this purpose. One of the main reasons students fall into the trap of drugs is peer pressure. Through these clubs, we are trying to counter that peer pressure because these clubs will essentially create another kind of peer pressure: against the use of drugs.
We have also launched the NSS and NCC volunteering programme. Under this initiative, NSS and NCC cadets are required to devote 30 hours of their time in a year to spread anti-drug awareness through different methods. Those who complete 30 hours of volunteer work will be given a certificate. The best-performing units at the district and state levels will also be recognised.
We have also released a 25-minute film to be shown in schools. This film will be screened in every school for students in Class 9 and above.
This is a well-thought-out film that explains to the students the harmful effects of drugs and how they could affect their lives.
The chief minister also made a very emotional appeal in the video to the students.
Q: What about cross-border drug trade and surveillance at ports and airports? How effective is it?
A: There is a mechanism called N-Cord or Narcotics Coordination. This involves the coordinated efforts of state and Central agencies such as the NCB, Customs, DRI, port and airport authorities, coast guard, postal department, and the health department to fight the drug trade.
We conduct regular meetings with officials from these agencies and departments to improve our efforts.
In the last six months, the chief secretary of the state organised two such meetings to ensure proper and smooth coordination between different departments to fight the menace of drugs.
Q: Drugs are sold online as well. What steps are you taking to tackle this?
A: We are going for a merger of the prohibition enforcement wing and the narcotics intelligence bureau.
Under this, a new cyber cell will be set up for surveillance over the sale of drugs and narcotic substances over cyberspace and the Dark Web. The online sale of drugs will be monitored more rigorously.
Q: Chief Minister MK Stalin said in the meeting that he would become a dictator to those officials who are facilitating the drug trade in Tamil Nadu. How big a problem is this?
A: The message from the chief minister is very clear: that there will be zero tolerance of any kind of connivance by police officials in facilitating the drug trade.
A few instances of this came to our notice, and strict action has been taken against the offenders.
A warning has been issued to everyone in the department not to indulge in any such acts.
