India - UNODC and Government of India discuss cooperation on drugs and crime

The UNODC Representative of South Asia, Mr. Sergey Kapinos called upon the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Mr. Kiren Rijiju, in New Delhi on December 28, 2016. He apprised the honorable Minister about the global and regional trends in trafficking and other forms of transnational organized crime and briefed on the current and slated activities of the UNODC Office for South Asia (ROSA). Mr. Kapinos solicited India's support in broadening ROSA's project activities in India and the region. Mr. Kiren Rijiju noted the good working relations between UNODC and the Government of India and assured necessary support and cooperation on behalf of his Ministry. 

As a follow-up to his meeting with the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Mr. Kapinos had a meeting with India's Narcotics Control Bureau to carry forward the discussions. He met with the Director General of the Narcotics Control Bureau at its headquarters on February 2, 2017. 

While appreciating UNODC's role in strengthening law enforcement capacities in India, the Director General of Narcotics Control Bureau Mr. R. R. Bhatnagar also expressed concerns with regard to the misuse of the New Psychotropic Substances, particularly amongst the young. Mr. Kapinos assured Mr. Bhatnagar of UNODC's assistance and invited inputs from the Narcotics Control Bureau for developing a new multi-year Regional Programme Framework that UNODC is embarking on to respond to the rising challenges of drugs, crime and terrorism.1. Dialogue with stakeholders at top level to enforce the obligation of respect for human rights in the criminal justice system. 

Other important meetings Mr. Kapinos held with the respective heads of National Academy of Customs, Excise and Narcotics (NACEN), Financial Intelligence Unit and Enforcement Directorate of the Government of India. These meetings included wide range discussions on possible UNODC technical assistance in the respective mandate areas of drug law enforcement, financial intelligence, anti-money laundering and linked financing of terrorist activities. In his meeting with the Director General of NACEN, Mr. P.K. Dash, Mr Kapinos impressed upon the importance of UNODC - NACEN cooperation in the area of drug law enforcement and linked capacity building initiatives, particularly building on the UNODC's eLearning programme in India.