KUNAR - Poppy crops grown over 50 hectares of land were destroyed during a newly launched anti-poppy campaign in the eastern Kunar province, officials said.

The illicit plant has been sowed in Nurgal, Sawkai, Sarkani, Narang, Watapur and Shigal districts, according to provincial counter-narcotics director, Idrees Safi. He told Pajhwok Afghan News that the campaign initiated by the counter-narcotics ministry was aimed at eradicating the crops grown over 200 hectares of land in Kunar.

The campaign involved 300 policemen and other security personnel, a senior police officer, Gen. Abdul Habib Syedkhel, said.

However, the Provincial Council head, Mia Hassan Adel, said the campaign could not succeed when it lacked people's cooperation. He said the government should have provided growers with improved quality wheat seed, chemical fertilizer and other agriculture inputs before launching the drive.

A farmer, Atiqullah, in Mazar valley, said residents opted to grow poppy in their fields in the wake of extreme poverty. He said his crop was eradicated, but offered no compensation in return.

Source: Pajhwok Afghan News