Will step up anti-drug battle: CM

A series of tough measures to fight drug addiction in Punjab have raised attention, including mandatory testing for government officials and recommendation for death penalty to first-time peddlers but Chief Minister Amarinder Singh indicates that this is just the start. He vows to take the battle to the ‘next level’.

Singh, who came to power promising a crackdown on the drugs epidemic in Punjab, has told ET that some of the measures may seem tough but were needed for a ‘powerful thrust’ to save future generations. “I felt it was time now to take the battle to the next level. The initiatives of the last few days are meant to give a powerful thrust to our efforts to free Punjab of drugs. I’ll do what it takes to fulfil my promise,” Singh said.

The Punjab CM has recently come under attack from the state BJP that has accused him of doing little to curb the menace after a spate of drug-related deaths. A senior state leader also suggested on Thursday that the CM and his cabinet take the mandatory dope test that his government has instituted for all government employees, including police personnel. Singh said he was willing to undergo a dope test but would ‘leave it to the conscience of other elected representatives’ to take a call on it.


With the issue gaining political traction, a series of recent measures have been announced by the state, including a weekly meeting on Mondays to review the progress in contra drug measures, which would be chaired personally by the CM. These, combined with earlier initiatives in the past year, has brought down drug menace in the state, Singh said. “We have tried a series of methods over the last one yearto combat the menace and have succeeded in choking the supply lines and creating the necessary environment to wipe out the menace.”