Kohima, June 26 (IANS) A senior IPS officer said on Thursday that Nagaland has a 215 km long porous and unfenced border with Myanmar and is located very near to the infamous ‘Golden Triangle’, which has forced the state to become a transit point of various drugs going to other states.

On the occasion of International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Kohima-based Superintendent of Police, Narcotics, Shinde Suresh Kailasrao, said the infamous ‘Golden Triangle’, close to Indian borders, is a hub for the smuggling of varied drugs.

“Checking illicit drug trafficking is a major challenge facing the police and other enforcing agencies as the traffickers keep on changing their drug transit routes,” the IPS officer told the media.

He informed that during the last one and a half years, Nagaland police registered a total of 270 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act 1985 and apprehended 465 persons in trafficking related cases.

He said the majority of the seizures of drugs, including heroin and ganja, were on the Dimapur-Imphal National Highway-2. The official further stated that since the declaration of the War Against Drugs campaign by Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, the state Police department has upped the ante and has been working in close coordination with the district administration and line departments.

Several awareness and preventive activities have also been taken up in schools, he said. Recalling that this year’s theme of the “International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking is “Break the Cycle”, Shinde Suresh said focus is being given on prevention of trafficking and ensuring demand reduction.

He further appealed to the general public to share any available information on drug trafficking to the police, saying the person’s identity would be kept anonymous.

Bernice D, Joint Director (Prevention), Nagaland State AIDS Control Society, said the state government is going in the forefront to address the problem of drug abuse and related issues.

She said all the departments of the state government are taking the issue seriously and have started working their bit to ensure a drug-free society for the younger generations.

The official stated that though the challenge is huge with so many tentacles, with the concerted efforts of all stakeholders, including the government, the media and the public, it can be overcome.

Saying that they are working on three broad parameters to address the issue of drug abuse – supply reduction, demand reduction and harm reduction, Bernice maintained that the issue of drug abuse also needs to be seen through biological, psychological and socio-economic ramifications.

Informing that HIV prevalence has come down drastically in Nagaland during the last two decades, the social impacts of the menace are very large, she said they are also trying to ensure that the drug abusers don’t get infected with HIV/AIDS.

–IANS

sc/dan