Amarinder urges Akal Takht to issue appeal against drug abuse

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today urged Jathedar of the Akal Takht, the top temporal body of Sikhs, Giani Gurbachan Singh, to appeal to the community to not resort to drug abuse and strictly follow the path shown by their great Gurus.

The move comes days after the Punjab government, faced with criticism from several quarters over alleged spate of deaths due to drug overdose in the state, wrote to the Centre recommending death penalty for first-time drug peddlers and smugglers and ordered mandatory dope tests on all government employees.

Sri Akal Takht Sahib has played a pro-active role whenever Punjab is faced with any sort of crisis, Amarinder Singh said in a letter to the temporal body chief.

"A sizeable chunk of the state's population had been in the grip of drug abuse for the past many years," he pointed out, adding that several youngsters from Sikh families had also fallen prey to it.

The chief minister expressed concern over the gravity of the situation, which, he said, is against the tenets of Sikhism.

Though the government has already launched a vigorous anti-drug campaign, its efforts need to be further strengthened and supplemented, he said.

A fortnight ago, Giani Gurbachan Singh had urged the Punjab government to take strict measures to curb the drug menace prevalent in the state.

He said it was the duty of the Punjab police and the state government to tackle the problem.