Meghalaya police’s relentless effort to make the state drug-free has yielded success. In September alone, the state police recovered drugs worth Rs 33 crore and arrested 20 individuals under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
The biggest haul was made by the police in East Jaiñtia Hills district with the seizure of crystal meth, or high-purity methamphetamine, worth Rs 15 crore.
While previous drug seizures in Meghalaya had heroin, marijuana and yaba tablets (a mix of amphetamines and caffeine) as the main components, crystal meth has made its entry into the state, which is a cause of concern.
“Our commitment to the mission of making drug-free Meghalaya is unwavering, and we thank the people of Meghalaya for your trust and support. Together, we’ll make Meghalaya a safer and happier place,” Meghalaya police said in X (formally known as Twitter).
Although Meghalaya is mainly a transit state for drugs smuggled across India’s borders with Myanmar as they make their way through to the rest of the country, there is a rising tide of drug addiction in the state as well.
Earlier this year, Social Welfare Minister Paul Lyngdoh informed that Meghalaya has some 2.5 lakh drug addicts, 30,000 of whom are women.
A majority of the addicts are injecting drugs, he said.
The government has identified 12 to 15 localities in Shillong where incidents of the use of narcotics are very high and the use of intravenous drug use is linked to issues such as HIV.
