Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Sep 22: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of building ‘Viksit Bharat@2047’ cannot be achieved with a youth population and future generations weakened by narcotics addiction.
Inaugurating the third National Conference of Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) heads of states and Union Territories, organised by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) under the theme ‘United Resolve, Shared Responsibility’, Shah said the Centre has been working over the past five years to achieve the difficult objective of making India drug-free.
The two-day conference is being attended by ANTF heads from 36 states and UTs, along with representatives of government departments and other stakeholders. Discussions are focusing on narcotics control, dismantling drug cartels, tackling synthetic drugs and investigations involving the darknet and cryptocurrencies.
Shah said the time had come to take decisive action against narcotics, which he described as one of the most serious threats facing India and the world, and called for collective efforts to defeat the menace.
He said the government would collectively succeed in uprooting the drug trade from India by December 31, 2029.
The Home Minister said the country had made progress over the past five years in tackling challenges including terrorism in Kashmir, insurgency in the Northeast and Naxalism.
The Ministry of Home Affairs, with the cooperation of state governments, has addressed these major problems that had confronted the country for decades, he said.
Shah, however, said the fight against drugs was the most difficult of these battles and stressed that it could not be abandoned.
He said making India drug-free was essential to achieving the goal of a developed India by 2047, protecting future generations and ensuring that the youth contribute to the country’s development.
“We will have to fight this problem unitedly and with passion, and we must achieve victory,” he said.
Shah said the ‘Vision Document 2026-2029’ would serve as a key roadmap for all agencies involved in the anti-drug campaign.
He said the document had been prepared after extensive discussions with more than 35 departments and inputs from various stakeholders. It contains a comprehensive roadmap with specific targets and timelines, he added.
The targets and timelines would also be reviewed periodically, Shah said.
He stressed that the MHA and NCB could not tackle the drug menace on their own and called upon all stakeholders to treat the fight as a top priority and work with complete dedication.
The Home Minister said the anti-drug campaign needed to be pursued with clarity, with key focus areas already identified.
A state-level roadmap has also been prepared to ensure that intelligence gathering, investigation, financial action and prosecution move in the same direction, he said.
Shah recalled that the first ANTF conference focused on creating an institutional mechanism and strengthening it. The second conference dealt with capability, action and execution to convert that mechanism into concrete action.
“Today, the third ANTF conference will convert this roadmap into a decisive battle,” he said.
During the event, Shah released an informational video aimed at spreading awareness against drug abuse. He also laid the foundation stones for new NCB zonal office complexes in Lucknow and Dehradun, according to an official statement.
The best-performing ANTFs of states and UTs were also honoured during the conference.
Shah additionally launched the newly redesigned website of the Narcotics Control Bureau.