Chandigarh March 3: Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Sunday termed his government’s drive against the drug menace a “historic moment” for Punjab as the state police have launched a concentrated effort to snap supply lines and arrest those involved in it.
Speaking at the passing-out parade of around 2,500 recruits at a police training centre in Jahan Khelan here, Mann stressed that gangsters and drug smugglers had no place in Punjab and they would be “wiped out” and put behind bars soon.
Without naming any party, the chief minister accused previous regimes of patronising drug smugglers, gangsters and other criminals.
“But the state government (under him) has now started a crusade to weed out these anti-national elements,” he said, adding that his government would make the state drug-free with the active support of the public.
“The supply lines are being snapped, drug peddlers are being put behind bars and their properties confiscated,” he added. Congratulating those who passed out from the training centre, Mann said the mode of crime had changed over the years due to which police personnel were being imparted a specialised training.
He also handed over cheques for Rs 1 crore each to family members of five police personnel killed in the line of duty.
The CM said the state government had launched a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country by constituting a dedicated Sadak Surakhya Force to save lives in road accidents.
He said specially trained, freshly recruited 1,597 police personnel, including women, were the backbone of the force. Since its launch in February last year, the state had witnessed a 48.10% reduction in casualties due to accidents, he said.
Conduct dope test on ministers, MLAs: Chugh
Muktsar: BJP’s national general secretary Tarun Chugh on Sunday said CM Bhagwant Mann should get dope test conducted on his cabinet colleagues and MLAs of all parties before making an effort to make the state drug-free.
He said, “The AAP government wasted three years before starting a drive against drugs. Similarly, it has so far done nothing for the welfare of farmers. The Centre has provided Rs 100 crore each for the government medical colleges in Kapurthala and Hoshiarpur, but the CM has no time to lay the foundation stones.”
Chugh also demanded a CBI probe into the suicide attempt by a truck union leader in Sangrur district and the role of AAP’s Sangrur MLA Narinder Kaur Bharaj in the incident. The government should also bring a white paper on the current situation of water table in the state, he added
Summary: Punjab CM Mann declares there’s no place for gangsters and drug peddlers in the state, emphasizing strict action against them.