Operation Clean: In rural areas, no drugs found

Tribune News Service

Aparna Banerji

Jalandhar, May 31

As many as 650 police teams and 5,500 personnel across the state descended on the houses and establishments of drug peddlers in a statewide crackdown against drug traffickers.

Even though the Punjab Police claimed it was the “biggest crackdown on drug smugglers”, the ‘Operation Clean’ failed to yield anything in the rural areas of Jalandhar. The outcome of the drive comes as a much surprise in a region where substantial drug haul seizures are made by the rural police on a regular basis.

Day ago, 6 arrests, poppy husk, heroin seizures

• Interestingly, the rural police on Tuesday seized 35-kg poppy husk from a truck driver at Bhogpur. A case was registered under the NDPS Act against him at the Adampur police station
• Bilga police also nabbed a peddler with 6-kg poppy husk. Meanwhile, four persons were nabbed with 30 gm heroin at Verka and Goraya

As many as 327 personnel of the Jalandhar rural police carried out checks across the rural areas of the district under the operation launched by the DGP, Punjab, to crack down on drug traffickers. Police teams raided houses of drug traffickers and conducted CASO operation against those involved in drug trafficking.

In an operation carried out from 7 am to 12 noon under SSP Jalandhar, Mukhvinder Singh Bhullar, as many as 24 nakas were set up in Jalandhar and five patrolling parties and 35 police parties were deputed to carry out the checks. The police had identified 76 commercial drug smugglers/peddlers who were on target for drugs or other intoxicants, whose establishments were checked.

Under SP Manpreet Singh Dhillon and SP (Detective) Sarabjit Rai, as many as 35 houses were searched. The police said many of the identified commercial smugglers were found absconding or in jail. At the end of the operation, proceedings were initiated against five persons in Phillaur under Section 110 of the CrPC.

However, the exhaustive raids failed to yield any recovery of intoxicants or drugs in the district. SSP Bhullar said, “We had 76 drug peddlers or smugglers on target who deal with commercial quantities of drugs. Many of them are wanted. Most of them were found to be in jail, some were absconding, there were others who were out on bail. But there was no recovery of drugs from them. The five persons who have been caught are habitual offenders against whom proceedings had been initiated.”

When asked if it was possible that peddlers might have received information in some way, the SSP said, “It’s not possible that they might get any information of the raid. These kind of operations are held to place pressure on the smugglers. Drugs might not be always found at such an occasion. Even if someone destroys or flushes intoxicants during such raids, ultimately, the destroyed material can no more be circulated in the market.”