Gurdaspur administration, BSF up ante against drug smugglers
Ravi Dhaliwal
Gurdaspur, December 29
Two large seizures of heroin in the last one week near the International Border (IB) have sent the Gurdaspur administration and the security agencies in a tizzy following which all out efforts are being made to plug the gaps through which cross-border smuggling is carried out.
Yesterday’s incident in which the counter-intelligence unit of the Punjab Police arrested two peddlers with 10 kg of heroin from the IB is fresh in the minds of the local administrators, the police and the BSF.
Take advantage of foggy days
Foggy days are preferred by peddlers to bring narcotics and push intruders into the Indian side. The weatherman has predicted more fog in the coming weeks following which agencies have gone on an overdrive. —Official
Three days before this catch, the Gurdaspur police and the BSF, in a joint operation, had nabbed three peddlers having contacts in Pakistan. They admitted that a large quantity of heroin was flown into India through drones in mid-December.
Officials say these two incidents have proved that peddlers are most active during foggy weather, like it is these days. The weatherman has predicted more fog in the coming weeks following which the agencies have gone on an overdrive.
Deputy Commissioner (DC) Himanshu Aggarwal, DIG Prabhakar Joshi and SSP Deepak Hilori spent close to five hours yesterday evening at the IB. They met residents of half a dozen villages and asked them to remain vigilant till this winter’s fog disappears for good.
Residents from adjoining villages were asked to converge at Rosseh village, located on the IB, for the meeting.
Sources say the security agencies have tangible information that the Pakistan-based espionage agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) will try to push in contraband after taking advantage of the inclement weather.
“Foggy days are considered to be the favourite time for bringing in narcotics and for pushing in intruders,” said an officer.
Meanwhile, SSP Hilori has asked villagers to report the presence of any suspicious characters in their respective areas. The BSF has also announced a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh to any villager, who reports any unusual activity, including attempts to push in heroin through pipes, near the wire fencing.
