It is learnt that Goa police seized drugs worth over Rs 36 lakh from four different places in Pernem taluka and arrested four people, including an Austrian. It may be recalled that last week Pernem police seized cannabis plants, ganja and charas worth Rs 20 lakh from Korgao, Pernem and had arrested two accused in the case.
In the past two months, six raids on cannabis plantations have been conducted at Pernem. It must be said that the narcotics trade going on in Goa is tarnishing the image of the state. Pernem appears to be the epicenter of the drug trade as well as growing of cannabis in the state. The Goa police needs to keep a data record of those foreigners who have been arrested for possessing drugs in the past and restrain them from entering the country again.
We need to separate the drug peddlers from genuine foreign tourists. Unless the drug menace is not nipped in the bud, Goa will have to face a monstrous task of cleaning up the state from the drug trade since Goa is a preferred tourist destination among foreigners.
ADELMO FERNANDES, Vasco
