Lieutenant General (Retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, adviser to the Ministry of Home Affairs, announced a plan to establish separate prisons for drug addicts at the divisional level across the country.
He shared this during his speech as chief guest at an event held on Thursday at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital, on the occasion of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.
The event was also attended by Md Khoda Boksh Chowdhury, special assistant to the chief adviser, Nasimul Gani, senior secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, and Md Hasan Maruf, director general of the Department of Narcotics Control.
“The most important driving force of any country’s progress is its able-bodied youth. To become a successful and developed nation, we must keep the youth free of drugs,” said the adviser.
He noted that people of all classes and professions are becoming involved in drug use and trafficking. Alarmingly, women, children, and adolescents are also being exploited in drug trafficking, making them vulnerable to addiction and criminality.
He also informed that the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) recently approved a Tk 1,400 crore project for constructing seven addiction treatment centers in divisional cities.
The adviser emphasised that the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, and Ministry of Social Welfare are jointly working to tackle the drug problem.
“With advances in technology, new synthetic and semi-synthetic drugs have emerged worldwide, exacerbating the drug trafficking issue. The government is determined to save the nation from the scourge of drugs. Our strategies are evolving to combat this new threat,” he added.
He also noted that the Department of Narcotics Control currently has a workforce of 2,943 people across the country, with 1,622 dedicated to enforcement. The department operates through 64 district offices, one special zone, eight divisional intelligence offices, and eight divisional offices.
The adviser assured that all law enforcement and intelligence agencies remain alert and proactive to prevent the spread of new types of drugs.