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Stop drug trade

Apropos news item on the arrest of drug lord Jagdish Bhola, it's no surprise that drugs are supplied to not only Punjab but also far-off places outside the state. Numerous drug hauls have been confiscated from across the border too, with Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal only blaming the Centre for not doing enough to check smuggling of heroin. It is a well-known fact that after these drugs enter the Indian territory, they are available in every nook and corner of cities like Amritsar and Jalandhar, to name a few.

The police remain a spectator to such forces ruining the youth who easily get access to psychotropic drugs. It's high time that the police crack the whip on the drug vendors due to which many young boys are reeling under substance abuse. As many as 80 per cent of the patients at Swami Vivekanand De-addiction Centre in Guru Nanak Hospital, Amritsar, are young people caught on the wrong foot.

I am a painful survivor of the menace that has eaten up all of precious me, but not my willpower to rehabilitate and return to the mainstream!

Drug abuse survivor, via email

Drug trade patronised

This refers to the editorial “Tip of the ice-berg” (November 20). Nothing illegal can survive without political patronage. Synthetic drugs and narcotics trade is going on in Punjab with impunity because it is a lucrative business, spinning huge money which lines the pockets of bigwigs in power and positions. Bholas, Aulakhs and Chahals have been in this roaring business for years with the connivance of leaders and top bureaucracts who turn a Nelson’s eye towards their misdeeds. Government assurances of strict action and thorough investigation are mere eyewash. That is why the drug trade has proliferated so much even as the people of Punjab are being ruined because of the menace. Strong action against the nexus and network of the drug cartel is urgently required.

KARNAIL SINGH, Kharar

Fill crucial posts

It is a matter of concern that a large number of posts of teacher, nurse, doctor and constable are lying vacant in Punjab. People are suffering on this account as their important works are not attended to or delayed considerably. But the number of posts at the IAS and IPS levels are double than the required strength. The officers kill time without doing any work. It’s a huge loss to the state. It has been rightly observed in the editorial “All play no work” (November 21) that austerity at the cost of crucial posts is counter-productive. The state should fill all vacant posts that serve people and give the senior officers a degree of autonomy in handling their work. Only then can they held be responsible. It is shocking that there has been so much political interference in Punjab. No work is possible without the intervention of political bigwigs and state’s interest is ignored. They must think of the betterment of the state.

Subhash C Taneja, Gurgaon

Congrats, Prithvi Shaw

Congratulations to 14-year-old Prithvi Shaw for scoring an amazing 546 in an inter-school match. I am reminded of honorary secretary of the PCA M.P. Pandove’s younger days when as skipper of the Mahendra College cricket team, he scored an awe-inspiring 508 not out against Khalsa College, Patiala, in the inter-college match played at Baradari Cricket grounds in 1962. I also played the match as an opening batsman.

B.M. RAWLLEY, Zirakpur

Curb accidents in HP

This refers to the news item “Dy CM: Steps to be taken to reduce road accidents” (November 1). The situation on the issue in Himachal Pradesh, too, is gloomy. The incidence of fatal road mishaps in the state has risen to alarming proportions. The main causes for the road accidents are drunken/rash driving, use of cell phone while driving, overloading/overspeeding/overtaking, poor condition of roads, laxity in the enforcement of traffic rules, lack of proper coordination between transport department and traffic police, ill-trained drivers and fake driving licences. The authorities concerned should taken steps to curb the rate of accidents.

Tara Chand, Ambota (Una)

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