Amid incessant raids and witch-hunting of people for possession of drugs in the country, the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has suggested the Department of Revenue a few days back to review the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
The social justice ministry has sought to ¡°decriminalise" people in possession of small quantities of drugs for their consumption.
According to a report, the ministry has suggested the Revenue Department amend the Act by treating those who use drugs or are dependent on them as ¡°victims". It has also been suggested that they be sent to de-addiction and rehabilitation centers instead of prison.
The Department of Revenue had last month asked several ministries and departments, including the Union Home Ministry, Union Health Ministry, Union Ministry for Social Justice and Empowerment, agencies like Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to suggest amendments to the law, if any, along with their reasons.
The Indian government enacted the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, or NDPS Act, to control addictive drugs and prohibit their possession, dispersion, sale, import, and trade in the country.
There is a growing call to decriminalise possession and consumption of drugs for recreation in the country and to do away with archaic laws which criminalise possession of drugs in very small quantities.