SHILLONG, April 22: Social Welfare Minister Kyrmen Shylla has advocated the need to set up a dedicated check gate in East Jaintia Hills to thwart suspected smuggling attempts of contraband including drugs into Meghalaya.
The minister’s statement assumes significance as the Silchar-Shillong road is said to be one of the most used routes to smuggle drugs into the state and several seizures have also been made on this route recently.
Speaking to The Shillong Times here on Thursday, Shylla said there should be some sort of mechanism in the district which would keep a tab on the movement of illegal goods, be it drugs or any other substance. “If we can introduce something like that, it would be of great help to reduce the problem of drugs in the state,” he said.
Just recently, five persons in possession of heroin and cash worth Rs 1.92 lakh were arrested after a tip-off about narcotic drugs being smuggled into Shillong. A naka checking was set up by East Khasi Hills Anti-Narcotic Task Force (ANTF) at View Point, Mawiong, which led to the arrest of (Contd on P-4)
Min for check…
(Contd from P-3) the peddlers.
The social welfare minister also suggested that the new entry gate, which is coming up at Ratacherra, can also be used as a check gate to ensure that nothing illegal enters the state.
He, however, said that the matter will have to be discussed with the chief minister.
Acknowledging former East Jaintia Hills Superintendent of Police for taking actions to restrain the menace of drugs in the district, the minister said he has requested the incumbent SP to take all measures and ensure that no crime is committed in the district.
Lauding the police for working hard to tackle the problem, the minister asked the NGOs, Rangbah Shnong and citizens at large to work in tandem and address the problems.
