Mizoram joined the rest of the world to mark the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on Wednesday by incinerating drugs worth Rs. 5,47,26,485.
The incineration of drugs was carried out under the leadership of K.T. Beicho, commissioner & secretary to the Excise and Narcotics department, Mizoram.
According to information, at 10:30 in the morning, the staff and officials of the Excise and Narcotics department gathered at the incinerating room of the Zoological Park in Lungverh and incinerated the drugs they seized as per the guidelines of the NDPS Act, 1985.
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The drugs, which are part of the seized substances in 318 cases between 2017 to 2019, were incinerated as per the government of India notification vide G.S.R. 38(E) issued on January 16, 2015 and Section 52 ‘A’ of the Narcotics Drugs & Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.
Of the incinerated drugs, the highest quantity was heroin weighing 6.845 kgs (worth Rs. 1,71,12,500), ganja came second with 79.805 kgs (worth Rs. 2,39,415).
The rest of the drugs were tablets, phials and capsules with the highest amount of tablets seized being Alprazolam where 1,966 tablets worth Rs. 3, 920 were incinerated.
The programme of the Mizoram Excise and Narcotics department was followed by a programme of Mizoram police who at 1 pm gathered at the Zoological Park and incinerated drugs worth Rs. 52, 28, 967 under the leadership of Lalhuliana Fanai, SP, CID(Crime) and Neihchungnunga, DIG (CID) Mizoram.
The incinerated drugs consisted of 1545.68 grams of heroin, 8.5 kgs of ganja and 31.731 kgs of pseudoephedrine.
Every year, June 26 is observed as the International day against Drug Abuse & Illicit Trafficking after the United Nations General Assembly on December 7, 1987 passed a resolution to observe June 26 as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking as an expression of its determination to strengthen action and cooperation to achieve the goal of an international society free of drug abuse.
The date was chosen to commemorate Lin Zexu’s dismantling of the opium trade in Humen, Guangdong, just before the First Opium War in China.
The motto of the campaign for this year’s International Day against Drug Abuse & Illicit Trafficking is ‘Health for Justice, Justice for Health’.