Given the drug menace in Punjab, the Army has started conducting tests during its recruitment rallies in the State to rule out candidates addicted to any banned substance. These tests were started six months ago. Punjab is the only State where such screening is being carried out.
The decision to go in for random drug tests after the candidates aspiring to join the Army finish the mandatory 1.6 km run and chin-ups was taken following alarming reports about substance abuse in Punjab in the last couple of years.
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) in its annual report released in July this year stated that Punjab has the highest average of drug abuse among the youth, a whopping 51.6 per cent, which is 18 times more than the national average of 2.8 per cent.
Two Punjab cities figured among the top three in India which reported the maximum drug abuse and peddling activities. While 878 people
were booked in Amritsar under the Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS), 567 in ludhiana had cases of drug abuse and
illicit drug trade activities against them.
last year also saw the busting of a major drug scam with the arrest of synthetic drug racket kingpin Jagdish Bhola, who alleged that some top Punjab politicians were also involved in the drug racket.
The NCRB report also said that in 2013, Punjab had the highest number of people booked under the NDPS Act.
The Act includes activities related to production, preparation, manufacturing or trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances not limited to opium, cannabis, pseudoephedrine, poppy husk and heroin. As many as 14,564 people were booked under this Act in Punjab which is perhaps the highest in the country.
The UN had also expressed concern over narcotic consumption in the State in its report two years ago.
In this backdrop, the Army opted for drug tests, sources said here on Monday adding the drill started six months ago. The Army has so far conducted two recruitment rallies in Punjab after introducing the test. These tests were not conducted at other centres in the country, they said. At an average, about 3,500 young men are recruited from Punjab into the Army as per Recruitable Male Population ratio.
As regards recruitment of jawans all over the country, they said 11 recruitment zones sub-divided in 71 Army Recruitment Offices (ARO) conduct at least two open rallies in a year in their respective areas.
Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan generally see high response with more than 10,000 to 15,000 candidates turning up every day. The rallies in these zones are held over a period of seven to ten days. More than 34 lakh young men appear for these rallies throughout the country every year to fill vacancies ranging from 60,000 to 70,000, they said.
The concept of open rally was introduced in 1998 to give a chance to aspiring youth in the age group of 17 to 21 to walk in for the recruitment with relevant documents about age, domicile and education. After passing the physical fitness test at the rally, they undergo a medical examination and then have to appear for a written examination.