CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Government will provide rehabilitation and de-addiction for individuals caught with a non-commercial quantity of drugs, granting them immunity under Section 64(a) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Interestingly, after Kerala, Punjab ranked second among all states in the country last year for the number of cases registered under the NDPS Act. However, there has been a declining trend in the registration of such cases over the past three years.
Sources have revealed that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Punjab government is not inclined to criminalise addicts caught with a non-commercial quantity of drugs by imprisoning them. Instead, the government has opted to focus on de-addiction and rehabilitation for those found with less than 2.5 grams of heroin, as defined under the NDPS Act. The government has also clearly outlined the distinction between commercial and non-commercial quantities for various illegally used drugs.
Section 64(A) of the NDPS Act offers immunity from prosecution to addicts or individuals charged with an offense under Section 27 (punishment for consumption of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances) or offenses involving a small quantity of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances. This immunity is granted only if the individuals voluntarily agree to undergo treatment for de-addiction.
It reads, ” Who voluntarily seeks to undergo medical treatment for de-addiction from a hospital or an institution maintained or recognised by the government or a local authority and undergoes such treatment shall not be liable to prosecution under section 27 or under any other section for offences involved in a small quantity of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances.’’
It further states that the said immunity from prosecution may be withdrawn if the addict does not undergo complete treatment for de-addiction.
In the last 12 days the total drug peddlers arrested have touched 1,658. As per the figures with the state police about the daily arrests point towards that the large number of accused arrested with non-commercial quantities.
Special DGP (Law and Order), Punjab, Arpit Shukla, stated that Enforcement, De-addiction, and Prevention (EDP) are the main components of the government’s plan to eradicate the drug menace from the state. “The government wants to treat the addicts as patients, not as criminals. We will use section 64-A to de-addict those who are not peddlers and have been caught with small quantities to bring those youth back on track by treating them. As part of de-addiction, more than one dozen persons have been convinced till now to undergo de-addiction and rehabilitation treatment.’’
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