HM Shah chairs NCORD meeting, launches National Narcotics Helpline 'MANAS'

Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched the MANAS (Madak Padarth Nisedh Asuchna Kendra) Portal on Thursday with a toll-free number 1933 to seek advice on de-addiction and rehabilitation and share information on drug trafficking.

MANAS will have a toll-free number 1933, a web portal, a mobile app, and a UMANG app so that citizens of the country can anonymously connect with NCB 24x7 to seek advice on de-addiction and rehabilitation and share information on drug trafficking.

Addressing the 7th NCORD top-level meeting, Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched the National Narcotics Helpline 'MANAS' and informed that, for capacity-building, the "Centre of Excellence for Narcotics Control" has been founded and 'Mission Spandhan' has been initiated to create awareness among the public regarding issues relating to drugs.

Launching the MANAS Portal, Shah stated, "I appeal to form Joint Coordination Committees at the state level and strictly review financial investigations at the state level and then inform them in the central agencies of the finance ministry. I also appeal to the central agencies to file suo moto cases. The states need to spend a chunk of their budgets on narcotics forensics. Forensic Science University is working on a swadeshi, a cheap forensic narcotics testing kit that will help agencies file cases of drugs."

He further thanked the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and said, "I want to express my gratitude to the Social Justice Department for broadening this campaign. The Ministry has taken up the Nasha Mukt Bharat campaign well and all religious, youth, and Rotary organisations should join it. We have a long way to go in this fight against drugs and now we have to increase its speed and scope. He said that we should leave no stone unturned to increase the speed and comprehensiveness, we have to take many colleagues along."

Shah announced the constitution of the Zonal office at Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir and stated, "It will focus on curbing drug trafficking through the northwestern border of India."

NCB now has 30 zonal offices and 7 regional offices.

The Annual Report of 2023 of NCB highlights the efforts and accomplishments of NCB and all other agencies in its ongoing war against drug trafficking and drug abuse. It contains the data for seizures done by all agencies in recent years, the latest trends on drug trafficking, action under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (PITNDPS), financial investigation including action under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), etc.

Illicit cultivation is one big menace to be tackled, and, NCB along with BISAG-N has developed a web portal and mobile app "MAPDRUGS'' to curb illegal cultivation and provide accurate GIS information so that such illicit cultivation can be destroyed by the concerned agencies.

All Stakeholders including all ministries, departments, state governments, and heads of all agencies, working towards Nasha Mukt Bharat attended the meeting.

Senior Central Government functionaries including the Union Home Secretary, Revenue Secretary, Secretary Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment (MoSJ & E), Director of the Intelligence Bureau and Director General of NCB, participated in the meeting. C

hief Secretaries, DGsP, and Anti-Narcotics Task Force Heads of all states and union territories participated in the meeting virtually. Senior representatives of NCB, DRI, ED, BSF, SSB, CRPF, CISF, RPF, Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard, MoSJ & E, etc. also attended the meeting.