Intake of state youths in Army down to 1%: GOC

INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST DRUG ABUSE AND ILLICIT TRAFFICKING

Our Correspondent

Ferozepur, June 26

Major General SC Meston, GOC, Golden Arrow Division, today said that more and more youths of the state were taking to drugs and that the menace had reached alarming proportions. He cautioned against the nefarious designs of Pakistan, which was waging a proxy war by way of pushing drugs into the border state.

At a seminar here, Meston said once known as the ‘Sword Arm’ of the nation, Punjab had a rich tradition of supplying the forces with a steady flow of officers, JCO’s and jawans. However, the youths had gone astray and got addicted to alcohol and drugs.

“Since the prices of land have gone up, the youths have got easy money and they are spending it on drugs. This has led to a significant decline in youths joining the Army. The proportion of the annual intake from the state to the total intake has fallen from around 17 per cent to less than 1 per cent,” Meston said.

“The decline in numbers is no longer restricted to the officer cadre, but the number of recruits has sharply fallen across all ranks. This is disappointing for Punjab which has a glorious martial legacy,” he said.

The Major General said that poor standards of education at the grass roots, deteriorating health standards and the ever-growing menace of drug and alcohol abuse were posing a serious challenge to the economic and social health of the state.

Army holds campaigns

Fazilka: The Amogh Division of the Army held a drive to motivate the youth of three border villages to shun drugs and contribute to nation building. The Army organised awareness campaigns in border villages of Rana, Alamshah and Shahtirwala in coordination with the district administration and the Drug Rehabilitation Centre, Fazilka.

(Source- Sanjha Morcha)