Himachal: 19 'habitual' drug traffickers detained under stringent PIT-NDPS provisions

A state police spokesperson said the detained individuals are repeat and organised offenders who were continuously engaged in illicit trafficking activities and posed a serious threat to society, especially the youth.

Under it's intensified crackdown on drug traffickers, the Himachal Pradesh Police on Friday detained 19 habitual drug traffickers, involved in narcotics trade, particularly that of chitta (smack) and heroin, under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act, an official said on Friday. According to police, out of 19 detainees, four were detained in Shimla, three in Baddi, two each in Kangra, Bilaspur, Solan and Kinnaur and one each in Sirmaur and Nurpur. A state police spokesperson said the detained individuals are repeat and organised offenders who were continuously engaged in illicit trafficking activities and posed a serious threat to society, especially the youth. ''These actions are part of a focused preventive policing strategy being adopted by Himachal Pradesh Police, wherein sustained surveillance, intelligence gathering, backward linkage investigations, and careful documentation are being systematically converted into strong PIT-NDPS detention proposals,'' he said. The objective is not only to arrest offenders but also to incapacitate major traffickers and disrupt the larger drug supply networks operating in the state, he added. The spokesperson asserted that strict preventive detention measures will continue to be invoked against those who repeatedly indulge in drug-related offences despite earlier criminal action against them. ''Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has consistently encouraged active public participation, particularly from the youth, in this campaign. Citizens are urged to share information regarding drug trafficking and peddling through Dial 112. All such information is handled with complete confidentiality,'' the spokesperson said.