Time to go after the big fishes : Make the War meaningful
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: November 22 2023 -

The war cry has not been silenced.

And it is obvious that the Government is intent on conveying the message that the ongoing ethnic clash between the Meiteis and the Kukis is not going to silence the War on Drugs campaign.

This is best exemplified by the intensified destruction of poppy plantations spread over 81 acres in Ukhrul and Kamjong districts, 51 in the first intance at Ukhrul district and 30 acres in the second at Kamjong district.

Imphal is undoubtedly ringing out the message that it has got its focus in place and come fire and brimstone, the War on Drugs campaign will carry on and prior to May 3, poppy destruction drives carried out in different parts of the State were staple news in the daily newspapers published from Imphal.

Such a drive appears to have come back and this is perhaps the only positive development that Manipur has seen in the last six months or after May 3.

So even as poppy destruction drive appears to have come back, it is interesting to note that before May 3, and before Mizoram became the major drug route in the North East region, it was Manipur which was in the news for almost all drugs seizure cases in the North East region.

Drugs seized from Imphal-Moreh route, Imphal-Dimapur road and drugs coming from Manipur side and seized in other States of North East were regular, major stories that made it to the pages of all the major newspapers published in the North East region.

As repeatedly pointed out and called out in this column, to give teeth and more substance to the War on Drugs campaign, it is imperative for the Government to go beyond the act of destroying poppy plantations and arresting those carrying drugs for they may not be anything much more than couriers engaged to ferry the drugs at a fee.

Go for the big fishes. Go for those financing and establishing the contacts.

It was not very long back that some police personnel were arrested along with drugs near Pallel and nothing has since then been heard about the case.

The Sangai Express had then pointed out the need to go beyond the arrest of the rogue policemen and establish where the drugs were headed to.

Who contacted the policemen and who financed the whole operation starting from the job of picking up the drugs from the point of origin.

In the same vein The Sangai Express has been higlighting the need for the Government to look beyond the actual tiller of the soil, the farmers who planted the poppy plants and find out who is behind the whole scheme of financing the plantation, supplying the needed chemicals for the poppy plants to grow, who pick up the harvested poppy plants, who take it from the farmer etc.

Unfortunately nothing has been heard of any follow up action.

This is absolutely not how the war against drugs can be won or come anywhere near dealing a blow on the drugs trade.

Narco terrorists is the term that has gained currency and it is only right that the Government takes up the needed measures to identify who are those behind planting poppy spread over more than 80 acres of land at Ukhrul and Kamjong.

Or will the people nod in satisfaction with just the report that poppy plants have been destroyed ?

The big guns are still out there milking the utter failure of the Government to crack down on them and expose their underbelly and in the process laughing all the way to the bank.

And at the same time unleash a spell of death and mayhem, as understood in coming up with the term narco-terrorists.

The efforts to crack down on poppy plantations are noted and acknowleged but this is not any reason to start beating one’s chest and trumpet it to the people as some sort of an achievement.

The War on Drugs cannot and should not be understood only within the context of destroying poppy plantations and pulling up some drug pushers here and there.

The call is to go for the big guns and expose them. Only then will the War on Drugs gain more legitimacy in the eyes of the people.

Why has the Government failed to proceed beyond destroying popppy plantations and arresting some drug pusher is the question and this poser should haunt everyone.