War on Drugs: A war Manipur cannot lose
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Definitely, the state government’s resolve to carry on the war on drugs deserves appreciation from all sections of the society. Disposing of 314 Kgs of several illegal drugs at Lamdeng on January 25, 2025, Chief Minister N Biren vowed that the government will never retreat from the war on drugs and poppy plantations until the menace is completely rooted out. The Chief Minister also made it clear that some drug mafias, taking undue advantage of the current crisis and the resulting law and order situation, have been carrying out massive poppy plantations in some hill areas. The Chief Minister publicly stated that some people have been adamantly continuing with their business of poppy plantation and smuggling drugs. The implications are loud and clear; in spite of the sustained war on drugs, some people are still engaged in the multi-crore businesses of extensive poppy plantations and smuggling drugs; and the war on drugs has not yet achieved the desired result. Even if it is too early to expect any tangible result, the war on drugs needs regular reassessment, evaluation and review so as to take the campaign in the right direction and make it most effective. If we remember it right, the first cabinet meeting of the incumbent government held on March 22, 2022 resolved to make Manipur drug-free and assign an officer of the rank of IGP as the head of Anti-Narcotics Task Force. Taking serious note of the all pervasive disastrous impacts of drug abuse, extensive poppy plantation and smuggling of narcotic substances in/through the state, the preceding BJP-led government headed by the incumbent Chief Minister launched the war on drugs. But the war has not yielded any significant outcome so far. A decisive victory is still elusive. Nonetheless, it is heartening to note that the government is determined to carry on and intensify the war. The government and its agencies have already acknowledged large scale poppy plantation in many hill areas of the state in the midst of reports of law enforcing agencies destroying poppy plants at regular intervals, and it has already evolved into a serious socio-economic and political challenge.
With the state now caught in a serious and protracted violent crisis which is said to have its roots in the crackdown on drugs and poppy plantations, and the security forces primarily engaged in containing the violence, there is a growing suspicion that poppy planters are enjoying a free run in remote hill ranges of the state and drug mafias are flourishing in border areas. In order to make the war on drugs more effective, it is essential to identify the drug mafias, their strength as well as their modus operandi. When poppy cultivation is widespread in the hill areas of the state, illicit drug trafficking through the State is only a natural corollary. As evident in the busting of drug manufacturing units a few years back, some drug smugglers seemed to have walked the extra mile of setting up drug manufacturing factories in the state. Again, if one takes into account vast poppy plantations done in different districts, heroin or brown sugar manufacturing establishment was something waiting to be unrolled sooner rather than later. International watchdogs on drugs trade have already affirmed that Manipur is the opium producer for the infamous Golden Triangle. Official records say that the crude produce of poppy grown in Manipur is being smuggled out to Golden Triangle through the porous Indo-Myanmar border. It is just a matter of an hour or two from the cultivation site to cross the border from where the yield/consignment could reach clandestine laboratories in Golden Triangle. Heroin and other drugs manufactured in Golden Triangle are then smuggled into North East India, particularly through Mizoram and Manipur. Apart from local elements, there are reports of involvement of drug mafias from foreign countries such as China, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Nepal. They are said to not only have contacts in many remote villages where poppy plantations are done on a massive scale, but are also investing huge amounts. All these facts and reports must be taken into account if the war on drugs must emerge victorious, and this is a test of will which neither the government nor the people can lose.
With the state now caught in a serious and protracted violent crisis which is said to have its roots in the crackdown on drugs and poppy plantations, and the security forces primarily engaged in containing the violence, there is a growing suspicion that poppy planters are enjoying a free run in remote hill ranges of the state and drug mafias are flourishing in border areas. In order to make the war on drugs more effective, it is essential to identify the drug mafias, their strength as well as their modus operandi. When poppy cultivation is widespread in the hill areas of the state, illicit drug trafficking through the State is only a natural corollary. As evident in the busting of drug manufacturing units a few years back, some drug smugglers seemed to have walked the extra mile of setting up drug manufacturing factories in the state. Again, if one takes into account vast poppy plantations done in different districts, heroin or brown sugar manufacturing establishment was something waiting to be unrolled sooner rather than later. International watchdogs on drugs trade have already affirmed that Manipur is the opium producer for the infamous Golden Triangle. Official records say that the crude produce of poppy grown in Manipur is being smuggled out to Golden Triangle through the porous Indo-Myanmar border. It is just a matter of an hour or two from the cultivation site to cross the border from where the yield/consignment could reach clandestine laboratories in Golden Triangle. Heroin and other drugs manufactured in Golden Triangle are then smuggled into North East India, particularly through Mizoram and Manipur. Apart from local elements, there are reports of involvement of drug mafias from foreign countries such as China, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Nepal. They are said to not only have contacts in many remote villages where poppy plantations are done on a massive scale, but are also investing huge amounts. All these facts and reports must be taken into account if the war on drugs must emerge victorious, and this is a test of will which neither the government nor the people can lose.