Weekly Counseling Of Students, Plain Clothed Policemen Outside Schools, etc.: Uttarakhand HC Issues Directions To Curb Drug Peddling In The State [Read Judgment]

The Uttarakhand High Court on Monday issued a slew of directions to check drug peddling and abuse in the State.The Bench comprising Justice Rajiv Sharma and Justice Lok Pal Singh specifically took note of drug abuse in educational institutions, and directed the State to ensure that a policeman in plain clothes is stationed around each educational institute from 8am to 6pm. It further ordered all educational institutes in the State to ensure appointment of the senior-most teacher as the nodal officer to counsel students every Friday on the ill effects of drugs.The petition before the Court originally pertained to just one liquor vend which was alleged to be in close proximity of a hospital, Government museum, a girls college, and a bus stand. In his submissions, the petitioner, Mr. Manoj Singh Pawar had drawn the Court's attention to the Uttar Pradesh Number and Location of Excise Shops Rules, 1968, which bar opening of such vends in such close proximity of places of public worship, schools, hospitals or residential colonies. Similar instructions had been issued by the State as well.In view of the Petitioner's submissions, the Court observed, "This should not have been permitted to be done by the State government. The availability of narcotics including liquor, wine should not be readily available. These liquor vends should be far away from the educational institutions, busy hubs, commercial centers, hospitals, factories, temples etc."The Bench then enlarged the scope of the petition in larger public interest to ensure that no liquor vend is issued licence, opened, and operated in contravention of these rules. During the course of the hearing, it also interacted with the police authorities in the State, and expressed its concerns with regard to the availability of charas, heroin and artificial drugs to the students' community in the State.It lamented the fact that "drug abuse has broken the social fabric and has destroyed number of families", and directed the officers to sensitize the entire police force to ensure that drugs are not available to the students. The smuggling of such drugs from adjoining States into Uttarakhand was also directed to the checked.The Court was further informed that a Special Operational Group (SOG) has been constituted in each district under his jurisdiction. It however noted several deficiencies in the machinery put together by the State, observing, "There are no special check posts to check the smuggling of drugs/narcotic substances from across the border as well as in the bordering districts of Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana. A startling revelation has been made by the Deputy Inspector General that there is only one Drug Inspector available in the entire Kumaon Range. There are no rehabilitation centers in the entire Kumaon Region for rehabilitation of the youth addicted to drugs. There are no sufficient number of psychiatrists for counseling in the hospitals. There is no separate ward earmarked for rehabilitation of drugs addicts."The Court then opined that kingpins of the trade should be booked under the provisions of Money Laundering Act, 2002. It in fact went on to direct the Principal Secretary (Home) to the Government of Uttarakhand to issue directions to all investigating officers in the State to take recourse to Section 27A (punishment for financing illicit traffic and harboring offenders) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 for charging those accused of such activities in order to curb the menace of drug abuse.The Court thereafter issued the following orders:Constitution of Special Operation GroupsThe Special Operational Groups shall be headed by an Officer not below the rank of Inspector along with at least 10 police personnel out of which 5 should be women. The S.S.P./S.P. of each district shall be personally responsible to monitor the operations carried out by the Special Operational Group. The Circle Officer of the concerned Circle shall be the Supervising Officer.Appointment of drug inspectors within 3 monthsThe State Government is directed to appoint more Drugs Inspectors in each district in cluster of two districts in hill areas and two Drugs Inspectors in each plain district i.e. Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar and plain areas of Champawat and Nainital, within three months from today.Special check post on Indo-Nepal borderThe Director General of Police, State of Uttarakhand is directed to set up special check posts on Indo-Nepal Border to check the free flow of narcotics substances into the State of India from Nepal. The Special Check Post shall be headed by a person not below the rank of Sub Inspector. Needless to add that the check post shall be equipped with the latest state of art equipment i.e. Scanners. The check posts shall be set up within three months from today and the necessary equipments shall be supplied within this period only.Special task force at check posts adjoining neighboring StatesThe State Government ...

Weekly Counseling Of Students, Plain Clothed Policemen Outside Schools, etc.: Uttarakhand HC Issues Directions To Curb Drug Peddling In The State [Read Judgment]

Apoorva Mandhani

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