Bathinda, May 15
Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu today met the family members of a 17-year-old youth, who allegedly died of drug overdose in March, in the Dhobiana Basti area here.
After expressing condolences with the aggrieved family, Sidhu said: “The drug menace continues to haunt and claim lives of people in the state. All three governments, including the SAD-BJP, Congress and now AAP, have failed to curb it. But it is not the time to indulge in blame-game. We need to contemplate. Apart from enforcement to contain drug smuggling, raising awareness at the ground level will play a significant role.”
“While surveys being conducted by AIIMS and the ICMR claim drug addiction in the state is quite less, our findings contradict these. Addicts in lakhs have been going to de-addiction centres and a majority of them are youngsters. Like diabetes, it is a disease. The government must take concrete steps to provide jobs so that people do not fall prey to drugs. We need to devise a strategy to break the police-politician-peddler nexus,” Sidhu added.
The Class XII student, who also worked at a shop, became an addict through his friend circle. He was found dead in Dhobiana Basti.
His mother said: “We do not want compensation from the government. We just want them to act strictly against smugglers, so that mothers like me do not have to lose their sons to the menace. There is no earning hand in our family. I make do by stitching clothes. I urge the government to provide a job to my daughter.”
Area residents alleged drugs were being sold openly with barely any action from the authorities concerned.
Awareness can help tackle drug menace, says Navjot Singh Sidhu
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