Editorial
Poppy cultivation in our land?
We must nip it in the bud
The law enforcers are reported to have destroyed poppy fields in 18 bighas of land at a village in Chapainawabganj district. Similar drives were launched in some other areas in the recent past to stop poppy cultivation.
But is wiping the poppy fields clean enough of a measure to ward off the danger completely? We have to effectively prevent any future attempt at re-growing it at the inducement of vested quarters. This calls for legal action and meting out exemplary punishment to those responsible for poppy cultivation in order to deter anybody waiting in the wings to have it cultivated again.
The news is extremely disturbing for the simple reason that poppy is actually the source of developing heroin -- a drug responsible for ruining the lives of millions all over the world. One must not miss the point that poppy was grown on a modest scale in some countries before it assumed menacing proportions and engulfed those countries in a such way that the drug lords were even running parallel administrations in them. And the damage done to those societies has been simply incalculable.
The reports indicate that poppy merchants have been using various ruses to dupe the local farmers into thinking that they had actually planted some harmless oil plants. It has also been reported that some criminal groups were forcing villagers to cultivate poppy. And indications are there that outsiders might also have been involved in the process. So, there is reason to believe that its cultivation has been going on in an organised manner with the support of known and unknown criminals. And if that is true, the law enforcers and the local authorities will have plenty to answer for. Their belated awakening to the racketeering can only be partially made up for if they can effectively prevent its cultivation in future.
If we fail to nip it in the bud, before long Bangladesh might be enlisted as a source of raw material for heroin, a dreadful prospect to countenance with all the law and order problems facing us already. With drugs comes arms trafficking, a perfect combination for terrorist activities!
Given the far-reaching consequences of poppy cultivation, therefore, the threat will have to be eliminated, root and branch, and right now. The law enforcers will have to maintain constant surveillance with the help of local body leaders and make sure that poppy is not cultivated anywhere in Bangladesh.
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