Bumper crop of poppy poses problems for police
JAIPUR:
Poppy husk's bumper production in several areas of Udaipur is turning
out to be a major law and order problem for the police. It is not only
adding to the growing nexus between smugglers of Rajasthan and those
from Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Gujarat, but has also put lives of
several policemen in jeopardy in the recent past.
The smugglers who are supplying poppy husk in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Bikaner regions are acting fearlessly and firing at the chasing cops at will. Several incidents of smugglers firing at the police have been reported in Udaipur, Bhilwara and Jodhpur over the past one month.
The smugglers who are supplying poppy husk in Jaipur, Jodhpur and Bikaner regions are acting fearlessly and firing at the chasing cops at will. Several incidents of smugglers firing at the police have been reported in Udaipur, Bhilwara and Jodhpur over the past one month.
Udaipur's
Malwa area is emerging as a major supplier of poppy husk in the state,
sources said. "This season the crops have had bumper production. At some
villages including Ratlam, Neemach and Mandore, poppy husk is being
produced illegally," said a senior police officer.
He added the smugglers are mostly from Jodhpur, Jalore, Balotara and Sirohi. "The poppy husk is loaded in trucks and smuggled to Haryana, Gujarat, Gurgaon and Delhi," said the officer.
Smugglers who were transporting about 27 quintals of poppy husk in onion sacks tried to run over a police team in Jaipur on May 6, when a team of Chaksu police was trying to stop the truck. A constable named Dilip had a narrow escape. However, two of the smugglers were arrested. During interrogation, it came up that poppy husk was being supplied to Punjab.
Similarly, poppy husk smugglers fired at police team in Bhilwara on Saturday, in which a constable was injured in the Devgarh police station area. Similarly, in Arnod also, smugglers fired at a policeman. He sustained bullet injuries. In Jaswantgarh, smugglers fired in air to scare away the chasing police team.
Punjab, that has good irrigation facilities, is a major producer of rice and wheat. It attracts jobless labourers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Due to high demand for labour, the substance is given to the working community through food items or mixed with tea to make them work for longer hours. It gets them addicted and being a depressant, the poppy husk decreases hunger, too.
Experts said that Union government issues licences every year for poppy cultivation in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, where the buy-back rate ranges from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,200 per kg. The price depends on quality of the produce. However, in the black market, the same crop is sold at Rs 10,000 per kg. In 2011, union government gave poppy cultivation licences to 54,000 farmers from MP, UP and Rajasthan and it was grown upon 16,500 hectares in total.
The Union government controls production of poppy seeds. Out of the total requirement in the country, only 20% is produced locally, while the rest is imported from Turkey.
source : TNN
He added the smugglers are mostly from Jodhpur, Jalore, Balotara and Sirohi. "The poppy husk is loaded in trucks and smuggled to Haryana, Gujarat, Gurgaon and Delhi," said the officer.
Smugglers who were transporting about 27 quintals of poppy husk in onion sacks tried to run over a police team in Jaipur on May 6, when a team of Chaksu police was trying to stop the truck. A constable named Dilip had a narrow escape. However, two of the smugglers were arrested. During interrogation, it came up that poppy husk was being supplied to Punjab.
Similarly, poppy husk smugglers fired at police team in Bhilwara on Saturday, in which a constable was injured in the Devgarh police station area. Similarly, in Arnod also, smugglers fired at a policeman. He sustained bullet injuries. In Jaswantgarh, smugglers fired in air to scare away the chasing police team.
Punjab, that has good irrigation facilities, is a major producer of rice and wheat. It attracts jobless labourers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Due to high demand for labour, the substance is given to the working community through food items or mixed with tea to make them work for longer hours. It gets them addicted and being a depressant, the poppy husk decreases hunger, too.
Experts said that Union government issues licences every year for poppy cultivation in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, where the buy-back rate ranges from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,200 per kg. The price depends on quality of the produce. However, in the black market, the same crop is sold at Rs 10,000 per kg. In 2011, union government gave poppy cultivation licences to 54,000 farmers from MP, UP and Rajasthan and it was grown upon 16,500 hectares in total.
The Union government controls production of poppy seeds. Out of the total requirement in the country, only 20% is produced locally, while the rest is imported from Turkey.
source : TNN
0 comments