ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has directed all the security agencies to take concrete steps to combat the menace of drugs to protect the youth.
Federal Minister for Narcotics Control Azam Khan Swati, while briefing the National Assembly Standing Committee on Narcotics Control, said that the prime minister had directed all the security agencies and other stockholders to make serious efforts for eradication of drugs used in the country.
Senator Muhammad Sabir Shah said drugs had rose to an alarming level in the country, therefore, everyone needed to be concerned in that regard.
The growing trend of drug abuse in youth inside and outside educational institutes has posed a serious threat to the lives and health of students as well as to our future.
He said that the increasing proliferation of narcotics in the country was a very big issue and it should not be limited to the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF).
We need to look into the root cause of this menace, he said, adding that we have many secret agencies, what they are doing.
He said that during the previous meeting, it was decided that representative of all law enforcement and security agencies including the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), the Intelligence Bureau (IB), the Frontier Constabulary (FC), the police, the special branch, the customs, and the other agencies would be summoned to inquire from them and why they were taking no concrete steps in that regard.
On this, Senator Sardar Muhammad Shafiq Tareen said that his committee had written a letter to the chairman Senate with respect to summoning heads of all law enforcement and security agencies but the chairmen barred the committee from summoning heads of all agencies, and directed that the Ministry of Narcotics should hold meeting with them.
About the government decision regarding approval of industrial production of hemp in Pakistan, he said that the decision to allow cultivation of industrial hemp was aimed to generate revenue as it was largely used in medicine, textile products, and in the manufacture of many other products.
The Cabinet had allowed cultivation of industrial hemp having tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) value less then 0.3 percent for industrial and medicinal purposes, he said.
He said that the government had not allowed ordinary people to grow industrial hemp, and so far, only permitted two state-run institutions including International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS) and the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) to cultivate industrial hemp on experimental basis.
Dr Muhammad Iqbal Chuadhry of the ICCBS told the committee that the plant of industrial hemp and cannabis were different from each other as industrial hemp did not contain intoxicant, while cannabis contains intoxicant, he said.
He said that hemp seeds were used for producing oil, leaves for developing medication, while stems were used for fibers, which were gradually replacing cotton in the textile industry. “This is a $25 billion market and Pakistan can take a big share in this market,” Chaudhry said.
Shoaib Dastgir, secretary Ministry of Narcotics Control, said that initially the cultivation of industrial hemp would be started as a pilot project.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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