30 acres of poppy plantations destroyed
Source: Chronicle News Service
Imphal, December 26 2022:
Around 30 acres of poppy plantation found growing in K Henjang area under Thoubal Dam police station were destroyed by a combined team of police led by Imphal East SP M Pradip, Additional SP (Ops) Kh Herojit and SDPO Lamlai Amarnath along with OC of Thoubal Dam PS, Forest Department staff, and person nel of 29 Battalion BSF and NAB police station on Monday.
The poppy plantations were destroyed in continuation of the recent intensified drive launched by the government forces.
For the past few days, po lice teams assisted by forest department and trainee police personnel had been con ducting the drive under the war on drugs mission of the government.
The police have also rounded up some village leaders on the charge of allowing poppy cultivation in their area of jurisdiction while four police personnel have been suspended for alleged dereliction of duties.
The four have been placed under suspension with the accusation of allowing escape of two persons involved in poppy cultivation cases.
After witnessing large-scale poppy plantations in the remote hills of Kangpokpi district in Manipur, Chief Minister N Biren instructed the police station concerned to detain the tribal village authorities involved in the poppy cultivation.
As a follow-up action, Kangpokpi Police Station detained village secretary David Kipgen (40), and vice chairman Henkholun Kipgen, 62, but they managed to escape from the police station before they could take their statements, on Friday.
However, the police managed to re-arrest the duo.
They were taken to Imphal Police Station and produced before a court which remanded them in police custody till December 29 .
Thinghangjang village Chief Kamkhosei Haokip (48) was also arrested as a part of the all-out war against the persistent poppy cultivations in the state.
In a statement, the chief minister had quoted the arrested village leaders as saying that the illegal cultivation of poppy were carried out under pressure and collection of tax by some militant outfits under Suspension of Operation.