Chandigarh: With the Punjab Assembly elections around the corner, Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab VK Bhawra has underlined the need for more synergy between the states police and intelligence agencies to prevent inflow of drugs in the state. It is pertinent to mention that the Model Code of Conduct has come into force and the General Elections will be held on February 20, while the results will be declared on March 10, 2022.

The DGP presided over a high-level coordination meeting organized virtually for review of the drug situation in view of forthcoming assembly elections. The meeting was convened by Chief Director Vigilance Bureau-cum-State Police Nodal Officer (SPNO) for Elections, Punjab, while, ADGP RN Dhoke and ADGP Naresh Arora were also present in the meeting. Representatives from the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Border Security Force (BSF), Delhi Police, Haryana Police, Himachal Pradesh Police, Rajasthan Police, Chandigarh Police, Madhya Pradesh Police and Jammu & Kashmir Police attended the meeting.

During the meeting, all the neighbouring states and the agencies have decided to appoint nodal officers, who will share their mobile numbers and also make a WhatsApp group to share any information/intelligence on drugs on a real-time basis so that anyone indulging in drugs could be nabbed without wasting any time. All the representatives also decided to share a list of proclaimed offenders (POs), absconders and parole jumpers and accused of NDPS Act cases. They also decided to share details of people involved in smuggling of drugs with each other for better coordinated action.

The Punjab DGP also urged the Gwalior-based Central Bureau of Narcotics to ensure checking of illegal supply of poppy husk and opium in the areas where poppy is being cultivated, while asking Chief Drug Controllers of the northern region to ensure that no illegal supply of pharmaceutical drugs takes places from their areas to the Punjab side. /BI/