Inspector General of Police DeshabanduTennakoon said the entire underworld criminal activities that include killings and the harmful drug menace that harasses and violate human rights of the peaceful citizens of the country would be eradicated by the start of next year.
The IGP was speaking at the ceremony of taking over the newly constructed two-storied Police Station of Kumbukgete in the Kurunegala District on Wednesday (March 20). He said many people who dwell in remote areas of the country don’t feel this very seriously. However, the people of the Southern and Western Provinces are greatly affected with this plight.
The IGP said some parents and children consume drugs together in urban areas of the Western Province. Thugs of the underworld have deprived the freedom and peace of innocent people of the country by killing people almost every day. This trend has to be eliminated soon for the betterment of the people. In order to change this plight, I started a campaign on December 17 last year to wage a war against the drug dealers and underworld criminals as per the instructions of the Government and the Defense Ministry.
Many underworld leaders implement their targets of killings from overseas. Thousands of hardcore criminals have been arrested by now. Nearly 90 percent of people have endorsed this task of wiping out the underworld and rehabilitating drug addicts. During the past two years, more than 150,000 drug addicts, murderers and drug racketeers have been arrested by the Police and the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, he said.
The IGP said nearly 15,000 experienced police officers have been deployed to nab the underworld and drug- racketeers countrywide. Not only that, all illegal firearms and their owners would also be arrested and those who give true information over the illegal firearms and weapons that are used to kill people will be rewarded, the IGP added.
The land for this new police station had been donated by the Kasagala Raja Maha Viharadhipathi Ven. Malsiripura Chandraratne Nayaka Thera. All construction work had been carried out with generous donations of the philanthropists and Buddhist devotees in the Kurunegala District at a cost of Rs. 29 million. No Government funds had been utilised to construct this new police station.
