News at a glance

VP launches anti-drug campaign at DU

NEW DELHI: Vice President C. P. Radhakrishnan on Tuesday said universities are not just centres of learning but institutions that shape values and nurture leadership. Inaugurating the Drug-Free Campus Campaign at the University of Delhi, he said DU’s stand against substance abuse sends a strong message to society. He launched an e-pledge platform and mobile app under the Nasha Mukt Parisar Abhiyaan, urging nationwide student participation. Calling drug abuse a major social and public health challenge linked to productivity and national security, he stressed that a drug-free youth is vital for a developed India. He urged integrating the campaign across central institutions.

FbD: Two gets 20-year jail term for smuggling drugs

FARIDABAD: A local court has sentenced two men to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment in a 2021 cannabis smuggling case, officials said on Tuesday. Additional Sessions Judge Jyoti Lamba also imposed a fine of Rs 2 lakh each on the convicts, Sunil alias Anna, a resident of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, and Manish Kumar from Patna in Bihar. In default of payment, they will have to undergo an additional two years in jail, said Ravindra Gupta, defence counsel for the District Legal Services Authority. According to Gupta, the two were arrested on September 22, 2021, by a Crime Branch team led by Sub-Inspector Surendra Singh from Sector 85 after 58 kg of ganja was allegedly recovered from their car. Police said the contraband was sourced from Andhra Pradesh and supplied in Delhi and Palla, Faridabad.