Tribal hamlets: Police to keep tab on visitors

Thiruvananthapuram: The police will put in a surveillance system to monitor visitors to the

tribal hamlets

in

Vithura

, in the rural areas of the capital district, where at least five girl students were reported to have committed

suicides

in the recent few months.

After a visit to the houses of those who committed suicide and other places in the hamlets for gathering evidence, district police chief (Thiruvananthapuram rural) Divya Gopinath said that the police will set up a surveillance system to watch the outsiders visiting these hamlets. The girls had reportedly committed suicide after falling in love trap wherein the

drug mafia

has a major involvement. The police team led by the SP met the tribal chieftain and officials of the tribal welfare department in the area to find out their grievances and take inputs from them.

The parents of those who committed suicide told police that the presence of drug mafia is rampant in the area. The police will extend its probe in this direction and will also launch an awareness campaign, the SP said.

On Sunday, a team of excise officials led by excise joint commissioner R Gopakumar visited the colonies in

Peringammala

and

Idinjar

. The excise team had visited three houses from where the suicides were reported. “We have had discussions with all the stakeholders in the area and have decided to set up teams to provide awareness classes for the tribal population in these areas,” Gopakumar said.

The excise department had earlier taken proactive steps where cases of youths falling into drug addiction were being reported. In 2018-19, the department, thinking much beyond their established task of enforcement of anti-drug laws, have been training tribal youths at Njaraneeli near Nedumangad for at least one year to equip them for facing competitive examinations for various government jobs offered by the public service commission. Five such youths who attended the coaching were shortlisted in PSC’s rank list for various jobs.

The department initiated the idea after it received an alarming report from the health department, that suicides are on the rise in the area, and at least 50% of those committing suicide were drug addicts.

Meanwhile, opposition leader

VD Satheesan

will visit the tribal hamlets in Vithura and Peringammala on Tuesday. The visit is in the wake of allegations that the excise and the police are not accepting complaints from tribal parents that drug mafia are trying to exploit their girl children pretending to be love affairs. The visit by the opposition leader will be along with Congress leaders from the district.