Narcotics Commissionerate mooted

Hyderabad: The Telangana government would soon create a Narcotics Commissionerate and will bring monitoring of pubs under the Telangana Excise Act 1968 to combat the spread of drug abuse in various sectors in the state.

Special Chief Secretary to Revenue BR Meena, Home Secretary Rajeev Trivedi and Principal Secretary to Excise Department Somesh Kumar have been tasked with the responsibility to review the NDPS and Excise acts in consultation with legal experts and come up with draft amendments to the act. The draft is likely to be discussed at a special meeting to be held on August 1.

Top officials of the Excise department told The Hans India that under the NDPS act, the state governments have been given the authority to appoint a special officer with a designation of Narcotic Commissioner to deal with the drug smuggling and abuse. Hence, the government is seriously planning to constitute a special wing to tackle drug smuggling in the state under the Central act.

The officials said the government is also planning to bring the pubs under the purview of the state excise department. At present, the functioning of the pubs are being monitored by local municipal authorities, police and Excise departments.

The role of the Excise department in awarding permission to run a pub was nothing except supplying liquor. Local authorities and the police department give no-objection certificate.

The government is planning to apply the Excise act and bring the pubs also under the control of the Excise department which has been giving permission to run the licensed liquor outlets (wine shops) and bars in the state.

This is likely to be included in the new excise policy that would come into effect from October 1.Officials maintain that that lack of strong mechanism in monitoring regular activities in pubs was one of the main reasons for growing drug abuse. The government is likely to include pubs in the new excise policy to be announced by August.