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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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India: Valley of gods turns into drug haven
The Statesman
Thursday 12 Jul 2007 The activities and movements of foreigners visiting the picturesque Kullu Valley are under, what the police describe as, “routine surveillance”. That is because, apart from the breath-taking beauty of its snow-washed mountain slopes and majestic peaks, the Kullu-Manali region has also been dubbed as a “drug-haven” with a special attraction to the visitors from abroad. Against the 18.6 lakh Indian tourists to the region there were over 90,000 foreigners last year. Israelis top the number, followed by Britons, Italians, Japanese, French, Germans, Koreans, Canadians, Australians, etc. A sizeable number of them are reportedly drug addicts. More alarmingly, some of them are said to be part of drug-trafficking gangs with international links. Therefore, even the genuine tourists drawn to the valley for trekking, river rafting, or just to enjoy the cool solitude of the mountains have become the object of suspicion. The local villagers and the Gurkhas take to cultivation of cannabis, especially in the remote areas, because of the lure of easy money and farming traditions. The remote village of Malana has now become famous internationally for its cherished and highly priced brands like “AK-47”, “Malana Cream”, “Malana Gold” etc. In the last three years, more than 40 foreigners were reportedly arrested on charges of drug smuggling. Diplomatic sensitivities compel the police to be extra cautious in dealing with such cases. Mr GD Bhargava, superintendent of police, Kullu district, confirmed that the police continued to act on “prior information based on surveillance, chance encounters, and occasionally, rivalries”. Even the embassies of the countries concerned keep track of their citizens’ activities and counsel them on de-addiction programmes. The case of missing foreigners continues to be a mystery. While the police tend to play it down, saying some might have gone back “without bothering to inform the local authorities”, the fact that at least 16 such cases remain unsolved in their records is no small matter. Some of course might have fallen into deep gorges or got buried under snow while trekking in the dense, inaccessible areas - or fallen prey to wild beasts. Many tourists prefer to trek alone or in their own groups, ignoring the officials’ advice to take along experienced local guides. But it is also believed that a lot of these mysterious disappearances are linked to crime at some level - including drug-trafficking and international group rivalries. Efforts of many foreign and Indian rescue teams, helicopter sorties and announcements of generous rewards for clues leading to the missing foreigners have gone in vain. Some, it is widely believed, just disappear into the remote villages after their visas expire. The police have difficulty keeping track of most of these roaming guests preferring to stay in unregistered guest-houses or in tiny hamlets as “paying guests”. Local families, whose economies are thus boosted, shield the guests from the eyes of the police. More so if both the parties are associated with drug-peddling! In fact, a number of guest-houses cold-shoulder Indian tourists. For instance, Kasaul, a small village along the Parvati river caters almost exclusively to Israeli tourists. Even most signboards of bars, restaurants and guest-houses are not in Hindi or English but in Hebrew. The Israelis, most of whom come for “chilling out” after a hard mandatory military training, spend a long vacation here amidst the wafting fog, alluring slopes and the dense forests. Some do yoga, meditation - but many come for “smoking” in the “stony” silences around Kasaul. An Indian tourist is plainly not welcome here - he is even viewed with suspicion because of several recent drug-related arrests. So is the case with the old Manali village. Another significant aspect is that of foreigners marrying local boys and girls - either because they are smitten by love or it is expedient for staying on in the valley after their visas expire. Some tourists feeling lonely and romantic in the enchanting environs fall easily to Cupid’s arrows and hook up with local guides. But many such marriages could also be linked to drug trade as well as to legitimate business opportunities. Some foreigners are said to go back briefly to their countries, set up links with travel outfits there, come back and look after the tourists for a good fee. A local spouse preferably with an abode, farmland and other facilities is mutually advantageous. Though about 86 such marriages have been registered with the local authorities so far, only 30 have been reported to the police. Marriage allows them a further stay of five years in the valley with annual extension of the visa. Rules demand that a “C-Form” containing details of a foreign tourist is to be filed with the local police. However, even the licensed hotels either become slack or ignore it deliberately, leaving the police in the dark about the movements of foreigners. That merely 22,630 C-Forms were filed with the Kullu police last year speaks for itself. The strong pipeline between foreign money and the local economy has lead to many cultural and other adjustments in the “Valley of Gods”. Most private houses have been either turned into guest-houses or have made provision for paying guests. The local residents take in their stride even the boisterous all-night “moonlight parties” of the foreigners with dance, alcohol, drugs and whatever (no entry for Indians, please) in congested, quaint-looking places like the Old Manali village. Strong is the grip of tourism! So strong that the government is generally anxious to play down the involvement of foreigners in crime. It does not want drug-related arrests, deaths, or disappearances to scare away foreigners planning to visit the valley. The state’s director general of police was recently obliged to issue a formal statement that the police had no information that “any drug mafia or the locally married foreigners were involved in charas trade in the Kullu belt”. (The author is a Special Representative of The Statesman based in Shimla) http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=4&theme=&usrsess=1&id=162417
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