PANAJI
Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar faced considerable heat over Goa’s narcotic drugs scenario from two of the most senior legislators -- both former CMs Pratapsingh Rane and Luizinho Faleiro -- during Question Hour on Friday.
Parrikar’s written response “no narcotics drugs are manufactured in the State of Goa” to Faleiro’s starred question stirred up a debate with Rane joining in.
Parrikar told the House that nearly 100 kgs of ketamine found in the Pissurlem industrial estate factory was not manufactured, but only stored there.
He, however, said since the case was part of a nation-wide operation of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, the State was not in a position to act. He also said the central agency till date has not officially intimated the details of its raid in Goa.
“The DRI busted an international racket. Drugs were seized in three States, in Goa, Panvel and even in Madhya Pradesh. We don’t know whether it is being manufactured here..according to my information it was only stored here,” Parrikar said.
He also asked Faleiro and members of the House not to generalise the issue of drug abuse in Goa. “You are making it look as if every child who goes to a school or college in Goa consumes drugs,” Parrikar said referring to a comment from Faleiro that students were consuming drugs. “It is a reality... we are manufacturing drugs for Goa, for the international market. It is happening under our nose, in front of police stations, in industrial estates and in tourist locales,” Faleiro had said of the drugs menace.
Meanwhile, when Rane pointed out that the factory where the 100 kgs of ketamine was seized belonged to a Goa BJP office-bearer and sought to know what action the government would take, Parrikar said, he had written to DRI and since it is an international racket the State government cannot do much and it is for the central agency to act.
The factory where the ketamine was seized belonged to Vassudev Parab, who is the North Goa general secretary of the BJP. Parab, however, denied his involvement with the drugs seized saying he had leased out the premises to the NRI for a fee, albeit in violation of the GIDC rules against sub-leasing.
Meanwhile, Parrikar asked Faleiro and members of the House to engage with heads of educational institutions to assist the government in tackling the menace. He said, behavioural changes were one of the early symptoms to detect drug use among students and educational institutions should play a role in tackling it. He said the response of principals was lukewarm when police wrote to them for specific inputs and suggested that he would now ask the Education Department to step in.
