Asserting that his government will make Karnataka a drug-free state, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Saturday instructed the officials to bring an amendment to the law regarding cancellation of licenses of shops and other centers selling drugs. Speaking at the review meeting with Deputy Commissioners (DCs) of all districts and CEOs of all Zilla Panchayats here, he asked for strict action to be continued against drugs.
"As many as 6,767 cases were registered in 2023 and 4,188 cases in 2024. So far this year, 1,793 cases have been registered. DCs and SP should take effective steps to curb drug trafficking in the districts," Siddaramaiah was quoted as telling officers, his office said in a release.
If necessary, the government is committed to implementing stricter laws, he said, as he called for continuous monitoring of drug activities in schools and colleges. Questioning as to why no action is being taken against hate speech in the districts, despite the Supreme Court's clear directions in this regard, the CM said a complaint should be filed immediately and action should be taken as per the law.
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Similarly, immediate action should be taken in cases of spreading false news and information about government schemes and measures taken, he said. The DCs should provide all cooperation to the police department to curb criminal activities. All pending cases under the Goonda Act should be disposed of expeditiously, he said.
Meanwhile, Minister Santosh Lad suggested "honey fencing" to prevent elephants from destroying agricultural fields or plantations, during the discussion on increasing incidents of human-animal conflicts in the state.
"A serious discussion was held in the meeting about the loss of lives due to human-animal conflict in many places in the state and to provide a scientific solution to this. At this time, Minister Santosh Lad explained to the Chief Minister about 'honey fencing, honey farming'," the Chief Minister's office said in a statement.
Pointing out that elephants do not come to the area where there are bees, the minister said that therefore, if honey farming is done along the elephant barricade, it will benefit the farmers and the elephant menace can also be avoided.
Siddarmaiah urged officials to take appropriate measures to prevent human-elephant conflict.
"Elephant task forces should work actively. Proper food should be made available to elephants in the forest itself. In addition to this, work should be done to remove lantana weeds. Also, the availability of drinking water should be ensured in sufficient quantities in the forest," he said.
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