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Martyrdom of Shaheed Udham Singh (31st July) 2 Punjab Advance August 2016 Editorial The record haul of drugs coming unchecked from the Attari border cannot be passed of as human error of the Pakistani authorities. It sends clear signals of the presence of cross-border dynamics of drug cartels and terror links. According to details from across the border, the truck with the seized narcotics and bags of rock salt granules arrived in Attari on June 24, but was stopped by Pak - istani officials as they suspected it contained suspicious material. Two days later, sen - ior Pakistani officials allowed the same payload to cross the border. However, alert officials on the Indian side conducted a physical check and were rewarded with the ‘biggest haul’ success anywhere in India. With the kind and amount of money involved, one can well conclude that the nexus between terrorism and drug trafficking can’t be ruled out. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs admits to a Pakistani role in pushing the drugs and, according to intelligence reports, serious attempts are being made to revive Sikh mil - itancy in Punjab, for which drug trafficking comes handy. At such a scale, the injection of drugs into the State is no less than an act of war, a lethal assault against the people of Punjab. In a succession of interlinked cases be - tween December 2018 and May 2019, drugs and weapons, including pistols and grenades, were transferred from Pakistan to receivers in Punjab. Similarly, in May and June 2017, in two related cases, a number of weapons, including AK series assault ri - fles, an MP-9 modified rifle, several revolvers and pistols, ammunition and quantities of heroin were recovered. Let us agree that the major narco-drug drug plaguing the state is not just Pun - jab’s problem, but is a national crisis. Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has inten - sified the anti-drug drive, making it a people’s movement. He has finalized a Rewards Scheme to incentivize people against drugs. Another major decision is preventive de - tention of repeat offenders in drug smuggling or trading. The state government has also reintroduced the Maharaja Ranjit Singh Awards by ho - nouring 21 sports legends and 81 other sports icons. This is after almost a decade that the state government has held such a major function. July-2019 Punjab Advance 3 s t 10 18 CM intensifies CM recommends Bharat 101 sports i n war against drugs Ratna for Balbir Singh e t n o C 06 Record drug haul exposes Pak terror links 4 Punjab Advance July-2019 20 24 30 cons honoured Nawan Shahr boy heads From citrus farming Canada’s largest homicide in - to agro tourism vestigation team Punjab www.punjabadvanceonline.com May›June› 2019 Advance LVOL›7 L ISSUE›5 Room No. 1, 5th Floor, Punjab Civil Secretariat, Chandigarh-160001, Ph. : 0172-2740668, Email Id: [email protected] C.E.O. - Anindita Mitra (IAS) Editor - Donald Banerjee Designer - Gagandeep Kaur Publisher - Information & Public Relations Department, Punjab Disclaimer: The views expressed by the authors in the articles published in PUNJAB ADVANCE are their own. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Punjab Government or the organization they work for. Editor reserves the right to edit, abridge or expand the articles submitted. In case of any dispute, legal jurisdiction will lie in Chandigarh based courts.Published and Edited by Ms. Anindita Mitra (IAS) on behalf of the Information and Public Relations Department, Punjab at Room No. 1, 5th Floor, Civil Sectt., Chandigarh July-2019 Punjab Advance 5 Cover Record drug haul exposes Pak terror links Donald Banerjee Noor, an Amritsar clearing agent Ajay Gupta has been booked among 20 others. The re - maining accused belong to Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, Amritsar and J & K. “They are all inter - linked and have connections with intelligence agencies in Pakistan,” said a senior police offi - cer. According to details emerging the truck with the seized narcotics and bags of rock salt gran - ules had arrived at Attari on June 24, but was stopped by Pakistani officials as they suspected it of containing suspicious material. Two day 532 kg of heroin worth Rs 2,700 crore, 52 later senior Pakistani officials allowed it to cross the border. However alert officials on the Indian kg of assorted narcotics –considered the side conducted a physical check and were re - largest recovery of drugs – seized at the warded with the biggest haul success anywhere Attari Integrated Checkpost on June 30, in India. may have been a big success. But it also With the kind and amount of money involved, sends signals of lapse of national security one can well conclude that the nexus between and also sounds alarm bells for a better terrorism and drug trafficking cant be ruled out. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs also admits Centre-state and inter-state coordination that there is a Pakistani role in pushing drugs. It in tackling the menace. could be the result of the crackdown on terrorist A Pakistani hand in the international drug smug - and militant outfits inKashmir. “Pakistan-based gling racket becomes abundantly clear when operators have shifted their focus on the Inter - such a massive payload comes unmolested national Border adjoining Punjab,” said a senior across the Attari border, despite the fact that the MHA official. Pakistani side has sophisticated truck scanners Intelligence reports also suggest that serious at - for the detection of contraband. tempts are being made to revive Sikh militancy The record seizure reinforces the presence of in Punjab for which drug trafficking comes handy. cross border dynamics of the drug cartels and Punjab saw a decade of neglect and steadily terror links. worsening indices under the Akalis. The Badal The Punjab Rural police investigating the case government had, in fact, told the Punjab & sees a narco-terror angle. During investigations Haryana High Court in 2009 that 75 per cent of more and more names have emerged to Punjab’s youth and 65 per cent of all families had strengthen this theory. Besides three Pakistani been affected by drug addiction; and that 30 per nationals Sahil Khan, Farooq Lone and Aamir cent of all inmates in Punjab’s jails were accused 6 Punjab Advance July-2019 Cover under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Sub - India. stances Act. For instance, in a succession of interlinked cases Let us agree the drug problem in Punjab is not between December 2018 and May 2019, drugs about drugs. It is about Pakistan’s ‘war of a thou - and weapons, including pistols and grenades, sand cuts’ against India. It is about national se - were transferred from Pakistan to receivers in curity.More than 717 kg of heroin have already Punjab. One of the telephonic contacts in Pak - been recovered by authorities in Punjab in the istan was traced back to Harmeet Singh aka PhD, current year, in addition to 285 kg of opium, ‘chief’ of the Khalistan Liberation Force. Similarly, 18,702 kg of poppy husk (a major source of a in May and June 2017, in two related cases, a range of opiates), and significant quantities of number of weapons, including AK series assault other drugs. The year 2018 saw the recovery of rifles, an MP-9 modified rifle, several revolvers 384 kg of heroin, 391 kg of opium, and 40,598 kg and pistols, ammunition and quantities of heroin of poppy husk, in addition to other drugs. Simi - were recovered, and nine persons were arrested. larly, in 2017, 192 kg of heroin, 558 kg of opium According to the FIRs registered in this cluster of and 42,631 kg of poppy husk, among other drugs, cases, the consignments had been arranged by were seized in Punjab. Lakhbir Singh Rode of the International Sikh At such a scale, the injection of drugs into the Youth Federation and Harmeet Singh aka PhD, State is no less than an act of war, a lethal assault both under the ISI’s protection in Pakistan. The against the people of Punjab. On its own, this transaction was allegedly mediated by Gurjit may still have been dismissed as criminal activity Singh aka Gurjiwan Singh, a resident of Canada. A at a gigantic scale, but what we have here is the stream of such cases, too many to recount here, use of narcotics in a broader strategy of covert involving the combined transfer of drugs, and unrestricted warfare. Narcotics are only one weapons, ammunition and explosives, docu - instrumentality that is being deployed by Pak - ments these flows over the years. istan against Punjab — and, indeed, India — with Punjab has been targeted from multiple direc - terrorism and financial instruments such as fake tions, and not just across its own border with Indian currency notes (FICN) combining to dev - Pakistan, with drug and weapons’ flows coming astating effect in the past, and with tremendous from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir potential to inflict harm in the present and fu - as well. ture. It is significant that, in the Attari seizure, one of These are not unconnected streams, but are the two accused is from Handwara in components of an integrated, planned and sus - Kashmir.These complex patterns and linkages are tained strategy. At the peak of Khalistani terror - sometimes spoken of as ‘narco-terrorism’, but ism in Punjab, the entire drug trade was what we are witnessing is much worse, and infi - controlled or facilitated by the various terrorist nitely more dangerous. groups that dominated the border areas, even as Tens of thousands of petty smugglers have, no the principal flows from Afghanistan through doubt, been arrested over the past years (6,622 Pakistan and across the border into India were already arrested this year; 13,959 in 2018).