Jamshedpur: A total of 15 people were arrested on charges of gambling from a house located in Prakash Nagar under the Birsanagar police station limits on Monday. A total of 16 smartphones, Rs 7,67,400 in cash, and several decks of playing cards were seized during the operation, police said.“Acting on a tip-off about large-scale gambling at the residence of Pritpal Singh on October 25, a team led by DSP (City) Sanjeev Kumar raided the house. People from various parts of the city, including Kadma, Sonari and Parsudih, had gathered at the den. Further investigation is under way to ascertain if fraud was also involved,” said SP (City) Lalit Meena.The arrested individuals have been identified as Praveen Singh, Anirudh Singh, Hiralal Gupta, Aftab Alam, Bimlesh Singh, Rajesh Kumar, Raja Mandal, Arjun Mahato, Ranjeet Mahato, Ravi Gupta, Mithun Kumar, Akash Munda, Pappu Sharma, Niranjan Srivastava, and house owner Pritpal Singh, police added.Attending a Narcotics Coordination Committee (NCORD) meeting earlier in the day, East Singhbhum deputy commissioner (DC) Rajiv Ranjan directed police and departments concerned to step up action against drug trafficking and strengthen surveillance in identified narcotics hotspots.“Strict legal action must be taken against those involved in drug trafficking and illegal drug trade. Sensitive areas should be monitored regularly, and there should be no unnecessary delays in investigations or legal proceedings. All departments concerned must work in coordination to identify and dismantle drug networks operating in the district,” DC Ranjan said.Enforcement and monitoring were under way at 10 hotspots. In September, action under the NDPS Act led to the seizure of 133 kg ganja and 52 packets of brown sugar, officials said.The education department and local police stations were directed to continue anti-drug programmes in schools. “Anti-drug awareness programmes should be conducted regularly in schools and colleges to educate students about the harmful effects of drugs on health, families and society,” DC stated.Urging residents to report narcotics sale on helpline 112 or police control room 0657-2431028, the DC stressed that de-addiction, treatment and rehabilitation services must remain accessible and effective for people affected by substance abuse.
