KABUL: Deputy Interior Minister General Mohammad Daud Daud has said that more than 110,000 people are active involved in drug business across the country.
Speaking at a news conference here, the minister said the number had been estimated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC).
He said the ministry had arrested over 1,000 smugglers, including some government officials, over the previous three years.
He said those involved in drug business were getting an estimated 6.7 billion dollars on annual basis. Of that amount, 20 per cent goes to farmers and the rest to local and foreign smugglers.
Referring to another UNODC's survey, the minister said over two million people were involved in poppy cultivation across the country. According to unofficial figures, poppy production is on the rise despite hectic efforts by the government and the international community.
Experts mention involvement of government officials as the main reason behind increase in poppy cultivation; however, the minister believes insecurity in many areas was propping the rise in poppy production.
Eighty-five per cent of poppy cultivation was in areas which are unstable from security point of view, the minister argued.
Daud said the security agencies had dismantled two opium laboratories in Badakhshan. Besides, more than 130 kilograms of opium, 200 kilograms of heroin and as much other chemicals were also seized during raids in that province.
Engineer Mohammad Sami, Deputy Minister for Counter-Narcotics, briefed journalists about the progress achieved by the government during the poppy eradication drive in winter.
He said 49,250 acres of land was cleared of poppies in different parts of the country. Of that, 20,000 acres of land was cleared in Helmand and 1,800 in Kandahar provinces.
According to the ministry's figures, poppy is cultivated on over 165,000 hectares of land in Afghanistan. | 
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