20,000 kg of ganja seized in Tripura after BJP-IPFT came to

Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb today said 20,000 kg of ganja was seized after the BJP-IPFT government came to power in the state in March this year.

"Twenty thousand kg of ganja was seized during last four months. Over 100 people were arrested. Our government will show zero tolerance to drug business and addiction," Deb told reporters at Nripendranagar tea estate near Agartala Airport.

Tripura produced 1 lakh kg cannabis every year during the rule of the erstwhile Left Front government, Deb said, adding he would never "forgive" former chief minister Manik Sarkar.

"People can never forgive him. I shall never forgive him. He is senior to me in age. But he did not take any action to stop rise of drug and cannabis business in Tripura. The issue was raised in the state assembly many times but Sarkar washed off his hands saying he was not aware," Deb said.

He claimed that Dhanpur, the home constituency of Manik Sarkar, is known for producing highest amount of ganja every year.

"One lakh kg of ganja is produced in Tripura annually. We have caught only 20,000 kg. It was continuing for 25 years. What has he done? I feel very bad for Manik Sarkar," Deb told reporters.

He said his government was contemplating to introduce a new law to combat illegal drug trade. Citing examples of Dubai, Singapore and Hong Kong, the chief minister said they became international hubs because they have strict law on drugs.

"We are working on a new law so that people involved with drug trade cant get out of jail," he said.

The chief minister said 265 acre of land was identified near Nripendranagar tea estate for setting up a unit of All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here. The proposal was earlier placed by state Health minister Sudip Roy Barman before Union Health minister JP Nadda in June this year.