Peddlers will not be spared, say Dayalpur residents

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, August 19

Residents of Dayalpur village on Sunday held an anti-drug rally at Morar village against the peddling of drugs in the village.

As many as 100 men from Dayalapur, Morar, Hamira and other villages attended the rally, which was the third anti-drug rally hosted entirely as a part of the campaign against drugs initiated by the residents of Dayalpur, after it took up cudgels to rescue 40 per cent of its youth steeped in drugs.

The first two rallies by the residents of the village were hosted earlier this year – in July – at Dayalpur and Hamira, the erstwhile hub of drug supply in the region, to counter the menace in the area.

Sunday’s rally, however, was primarily directed at a couple of peddlers who, as per the residents of Dayalpur, continue to sell drugs in the area despite the crackdown by the police.

Harjinder Singh Raja, former Dayalpur sarpanch and the brain behind the drive, in his address to youth of the village said the residents of the village would not allow the sale of drugs in the village and they should ensure action against any peddler who was still indulging in the trade.

Satnam Singh, SHO, Subhanpur police station, under which the Morar village falls, was invited to the rally that was slated to begin at 5.30. However, he turned up much earlier for the event at 3.30 and went away early after addressing some of the youngsters who had started gathering early at the spot.

As many as 85 youths have been undergoing the drug de-addiction treatment under the campaign of the village. These include addicts from neighbouring villages, including Hamira, and Jalandhar, Udhopur, Lambra and some from as far as Hoshiarpur.