Jammu, May 1 -- Lieutenant governor (LG) Manoj Sinha on Thursday said that narcotics smuggling is no less than terrorism and reiterated stringent punishment for those involved.

"I firmly believe that drug abuse is a form of silent terrorism, not merely a matter of law and order. The smuggling of narcotics represents terrorism in disguise. We have decided that drug traffickers in J&K will be treated under the law the same way terrorists are," Sinha, who led a drug-free Jammu Kashmir campaign in Doda, said.

The LG also highlighted that in just the last 20 days, around 350 FIRs were registered and 440 drug traffickers were arrested.

Sinha on April 11 launched the 100-day Nasha Mukt Jammu Kashmir Abhiyaan to tackle the drug menace in the U...