Jubair Hasan
Trading of the contraband drug, Yaba, is proving the traditional market economy wrong as the ongoing countrywide indefinite blockade coupled with hartals has no effect over the inflow of the tablet, officials said.
When all the country's economic activities are badly affected by the recent restive political satiation, the illegal trade of Yaba continues to balloon even during the time of blockade, they said.
According to the intelligence sources of Department of Narcotics Control (DNC), Yaba has been entering into the capital through 10 points from Cox's Bazar region during the blockade period through roads, airways, railways and waterways.
Seeking anonymity, a senior official of the department's intelligence wing said they have arrested six people along with Yaba consignments in separate drives over the last two weeks from the capital's Jatrabari, Uttara, Gulistan, Motijheel and Karwan Bazar areas.
Citing their confessional statements, he said the Yaba traders in large numbers targeted the period of political turmoil when law enforcers remain mostly engaged in maintaining law and order situation.
"If you look over the recent arrests and recoveries by the law enforcers in the border district of Cox's Bazar and other parts of the country, you'll have an idea about this," he said.
Boarder Guard Bangladesh (BGB), in a drive last week, recovered 0.1 million pieces of Yaba from a boat on the Naf River in Golarchar of Cox's Bazar. While a team of police raided Naitongpara village on the bank of Naf River and recovered 40,000 Yaba in the early hours of Friday.
Intelligence official (Chittagong Zone) of the DNC Md Golam Kibria said growing trade of the tablet of the Amphetamine-type stimulant (ATS) remained unabated in the blockade as the demand of such drugs continues to grow.
Although there is no scientific study available over its market size in Bangladesh, officials concerned made a preliminary projection based on the annual seizure list by the state-owned departments that the size would be more than Tk 18 billion.
With the amount the country could finance three large infrastructure projects like Mouchak-Malibagh Flyover per annum, the officials said.
According to the state-owned DNC, the country witnessed almost 600 hundred per cent increase in the number of Yaba seized over the last five years.
The DNC data showed that more than 6.0 million pieces of Yaba were seized by the law enforcement agencies in 2014 while the volume was 129,644 (0.13 million) in 2009.
The number was 2.8 million in 2013 while it was 1.9 million in 2012, 1.3 million in 2011 and 0.8 million in 2010, showing the crescendo.
"We could seize only a little portion of total consignment, thought to be 10 times more than the quantity we seized," DNC Director (operations and intelligence) Pranab Kumar Neogi told the FE.
He said the department does not have any specific data about the number of drug addicts as well as the quantity of Yaba smuggled into Bangladesh annually, he said. He disclosed that the drug addicts on an average spend at least Tk 300 for each tablet.
Based on the estimates done by the DNC, the law enforcement agencies, the BGB and the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), seized Yaba worth Tk 1.80 billion in 2014.
Seeking anonymity, another DNC senior official said: "The amount could be more than Tk 18 billion if we count the value 10 times higher."
Dr Arup Ratan Choudhury, founder-president of the Association for the Prevention of Drug Abuse (MANAS), expressed his deep concern over the growing use of drugs like Yaba.
He said taking Yaba is a deadly addiction which has spread in our country and it is eating away vitality from our youth and edging them towards destruction.
"We must address this issue with all seriousness to protect our next generation. Otherwise, the country would turn into a nation without merit and intellect," he added.
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