INFORMERS HELPING POLICE IN FIGHT AGAINST DRUGS TO GET CASH PRIZES AS REWARD: STF CHIEF ADGP GURPREET DEO

SAYS, DRAFT PROPOSAL OF REWARD POLICY PREPARED BY STF AND WILL SOON BE PUT UP BEFORE CHIEF MINISTER FOR FINAL APPROVAL

FEROZEPUR, JUNE 6, 2019: A reward policy to give cash prizes to the informers helping the police department in its fight against drug menace will soon be launched by the Punjab government as its draft has been prepared by the Special Task Force (STF).

Presiding over a public meeting with the people of drug-affected villages of Makhu and Zira block at Khadoor Palace Makhu, the STF chief and ADGP Mrs. Gupreet Kaur Deo said that this policy will ensure cash prizes to encourage those assisting police with the accurate information about smugglers.

She said that not only informers, officials and people working wholeheartedly against the drug menace will also be rewarded. The draft proposal is ready and will be put up before the Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh for his final approval, she added.

While interacting with the folks of various villages, Mrs. Deo hailed the efforts of ladies in village Narang Singh Wala for constituting a drug monitoring committee in the village and exhorted others to follow them.

She called upon Panchayat and people of the village Narang Singh Wala to help the committee in eliminating the menace completely from the village, adding she said that since the women are first victims of the drug abuse, they know the harmful effects of the drugs on a family.

The STF chief collected the feedback from the villagers and promised them to take their suggestions directly to Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh. She said that the drug menace cannot be wiped out without the people’s participation and urged people to turn this fight against drugs into a mass movement.

Sharing STF headquarters’ contact numbers i.e. 7901959595 and 7901939393, Mrs. Deo appealed people to call directly to the STF regarding information about drug smugglers and the informers’ names will be kept secret. The calls on these numbers are directly being monitored by her and utmost priority will be given to any kind of information against drug abuse, she added. She said that the suspected drug traders are under the scanner of the STF and their hefty wealth earned overnight is also under probe.

The STF chief urged people to differentiate between drug addicts/drug users and drug smugglers as both of them need different treatment. She asked police officials and people to have a sensitive and human approach toward the former and a strict or harsh approach towards later. She exhorted people to come forward to wipe out drug menace from their respective villages as no movements can be successful without people’s participation.

She explained how the militancy was eliminated from Punjab by the collective efforts of Punjabis and expressed hope that the Punjabis will wipe out this drug abuse in the same way.

Addressing the gathering, the Deputy Commissioner Mr. Chander Gaind called upon people to start the mass movement against drugs from their villages by setting their village free from the drug menace.

He appealed the villagers to make combined efforts against the Narco-terrorism so that Ferozepur district can set an example for others to follow.