Himachal Pradesh, Punjab cops search for peddlers in Nurpur

Our Correspondent

Nurpur, June 27

Cracking down on drug mafia active in the border areas of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, the police of the two states conducted a joint raid-cum-search operation at Bhadroya village in Damtal area of Nurpur in Kangra district late last evening.

Some male members are learnt to have fled their houses on seeing the police, leaving their wives and children behind. The operation that lasted over two hours was led by Damtal SHO Harish Guleri and Pathankot DSP Rajinder Minhas and comprised around 50 police personnel.

The police said seven houses of peddlers against whom cases had earlier been registered under the NDPS Act were searched.

There have been several instances of recovery of synthetic drugs in Himachal villages bordering Punjab in Nurpur and Indora sub-divisions of Kangra and a number of cases had been registered against peddlers.

The local residents have been blaming a tribal community whose members are have been earlier allegedly involved in bootlegging and had now switched to selling synthetic drugs.

As youngsters have been falling prey to drug trafficking, the issue has become a hot topic in the border belt. The residents have been demanding permanent deployment of police personnel in the area to keep a check on peddlers.