Drug crackdown in Mangaluru: 25 arrested in 14 days, QR code tips aid police
Mangaluru: Intensifying action against drug peddling, Mangaluru City police arrested 25 people and registered 12 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act between November 30 and December 13. During the operation, police seized 685.6 grams of MDMA and 1.5 kg of Ganja, The Times of India reported.
City police commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy reportedly said, the QR code based anonymous reporting system, introduced to enable citizens and students to discreetly share information on drug-related activities, has received an encouraging response. Several recent arrests were made based on inputs received through this system, helping police tighten the noose around drug peddlers.
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According to the report, so far this year, up to December 14, police have registered 107 drug peddling cases and arrested 219 accused. In addition, 562 cases were booked for drug consumption, leading to the arrest of 671 people.
During raids conducted this year, police allegedly seized large quantities of narcotics, including ganja worth Rs 88.7 lakh, MDMA valued at Rs 1.2 crore, and MDMA pills worth Rs 87,000. Other raids include charas worth Rs 1.7 lakh, hydro-weed ganja worth Rs 94.7 lakh, methamphetamine worth Rs 50,000, bhang chocolates worth Rs 6,800, cocaine worth Rs 1.9 lakh, and opium worth Rs 9,000.
In 2024, police arrested 160 peddlers in 88 cases, in addition to booking 1,026 cases for consumption and arresting 1,244 persons. In 2023, the police arrested 199 peddlers in 94 cases and booked 619 cases for consumption and arrested 749 persons.
"We ensure that peddlers are caught red-handed so that they cannot later dispute the case or claim innocence," TOI quoted commissioner Reddy as saying.
To curb drug use among students, police also introduced random drug testing in colleges. Around 100 educational institutions were covered in the first phase, where nearly 6,000 students were screened. As per the report, about 20 students tested positive and were counselled. They will undergo follow-up tests in the next phase.
Reiterating a zero-tolerance policy, the commissioner reportedly said random testing would continue and colleges have also been directed to conduct drug tests at the time of admission to deter substance abuse at an early stage.
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IAS officer row: Congress urges President Murmu not to accept resignation
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Thursday urged President Droupadi Murmu not to accept the "technical resignation" of IAS officer Rinkoo Singh Rahee and demanded that the Uttar Pradesh government be directed to provide work to the officer who has sought return to his parent Provincial Civil Services, citing prolonged lack of work.
Congress SC Department chairman Rajendra Pal Gautam said that even today, when a Dalit youth works hard to become an IAS-PCS officer, he or she has to face harassment.
"The situation becomes such that the officers are forced to resign from their job. One such officer is Rinkoo Singh Rahee Ji. When Rinkoo Singh Ji was a PCS officer, he exposed a scam in which crores of rupees had been embezzled. At that time, a murderous attack was carried out on him, and he was shot," Gautam said at a press conference.
"Look at the spirit of national service: Rinkoo Ji recovered and returned, becoming an IAS officer, but he continued to be punished for his honesty and kept being transferred repeatedly. Now the situation is that for the past eight months, he hasn't been assigned any work at all; no important or key position has been given to him. In such a situation, Rinkoo Ji refused to accept his salary and submitted a technical resignation," he said.
Is there no need for such honest officers in the country, the Congress leader asked.
"Will any officer be punished for being a Dalit?" he said.
"I demand from the Honourable President of the country that the technical resignation of IAS Rinkoo Singh Rahee Ji should not be accepted. At the same time, the UP government should be directed to provide work to him," Gautam said.
Rahee, currently attached to the Board of Revenue in Lucknow, has written to the President requesting repatriation to PCS, stating that he has remained without any defined responsibilities for around eight months.
When asked about his step, Rahee told PTI that his move should not be construed as an attempt to exit public service, emphasising that it was a procedural step.
"I am not talking about quitting the system. It is a technical resignation only. I consider the constitutional system to be good; if there are some shortcomings, they can be amended," he said.
Rahee also dismissed suggestions of personal distress or harassment, stating, "I have no personal issues. I am not personally harassed, not in depression, I have already faced the worst."
In his letter to the President dated March 26, Rahee has sought permission to tender a technical resignation from the IAS, citing moral dilemma over continuing in service without substantive responsibilities while drawing salary and benefits.
He stated that his adherence to constitutional values and an accountability-driven work approach had led to a sense of "unsuitability" within the prevailing administrative system.
