Speakers at a programme yesterday pitched for identifying drug importers to curb its usage.
Transport leaders and the BRTA chief asked the Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) not to blame the spread of drugs on the addicts alone.
Last year, the DNC had announced launching a month-long drive against drugs and an awareness campaign in January 2016.
Citing DNC data, speakers at the programme said over 5 million people in Bangladesh were drug addicts. However, ‘Manos’ an NGO, put the number at over 7 million.
Rights activist Jannat Fatema urged the BRTA to issue driving licence only after verifying that the driver was not an addict, saying most drivers involved in road accidents were found to be drunk. But Bangladesh Labour Federation General Secretary Osman Ali said that would be impossible.
BRTA Chairmen Nazrul Islam said there were rare instances of drunk driving. “Drivers involved in major accidents in recent times were not drunk,” he claimed.
Osman Ali, and Abul Kalam Azad, president of Dhaka Road Transport Owners’ Association, blamed satellite culture for leading the youth to drug addiction. They also urged the DNC to find out those who imported more liquor than they were permitted.
DNC Additional Director Amir Hossain, who presided over the programme, urged workers and drivers not to carry drugs in their vehicles, saying it would be an effective way to curb the spread of drugs.
