Bathinda: At a time when drug abuse is taking wider proportions and snatching lives in the most productive age, villages are turning to stringent measures to dissuade the drug trade and people involved with it.The Kabarwala village panchayat, under the Lambi assembly constituency in Muktsar district, decided to impose a fine of Rs 10,000 on anyone standing as surety for drug peddlers seeking bail in cases registered under the NDPS Act.The village panchayat decided that no elected sarpanch or panchayat member would endorse the surety, even if a villager stands as a surety for the drug peddler and requires endorsement from the sarpanch or a panchayat member.“The village panchayat was forced to adopt these measures after a youth from an adjoining village died near the village cremation grounds some days ago. There were also reports of some youngsters from the village falling prey to drug addiction, which is life-snatching,” Kabarwala sarpanch Anokh Singh told TOI.He said they had not limited the resolution to the village panchayat. We formed a 60-member committee in the village which studied the impact of drug abuse in detail and recommended stringent measures, Anokh Singh added.With a total population of over 2,500, the village has around 1,800 voters.The Malwa region is broadly affected by drug abuse. Seven youths reportedly died due to drug-related issues within a week, from August 11 to 18, across four districts of the region.The sarpanch said the village panchayat is preparing a list of drug addicts and making efforts to help them quit drugs.In the past, many other village panchayats passed resolutions against drug abuse but failed to ensure change.Angry over the easy availability of drugs, the residents of Maur Kalan village in Bathinda made graffiti highlighting, “drugs are easily available here”.
