Unite against drug abuse

Mansi Tewari, New Delhi

“We need to work together to fight for a drug free nation,” said the Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Mukul Wasnik on the occasion of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on June 26. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in collaboration with National Institute of Social Defence (NISD) organized a programme at Mavalankar auditorium in New Delhi.

The day is observed as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in order to focus the attention of the communities this problem. The Minister of Health and Family Welfare Ghulam Nabi Azad was the chief guest and the State Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment D. Napoleon, was the guest of honour.

Wasnik said that with 400 drug de-addiction centers operating in the country with the support of the ministry, the attention was being focused to ensure quality services. “Effective and appropriate service delivery demands regular professional development of the service providers in terms of skills and strategies for dealing with addiction,” said the minister.

At the function the minister released a ‘Manual of Minimum Standards for Programmes under the Scheme for Prevention of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse’ prepared by National Institute of Social Defence (NISD) in consultation with the Regional Resource and Training Centers (RRTCs) to provide a clear guideline to implementing agencies for developing their programmes in tune with acceptable standards in service delivery. ‘School drug awareness programme’, a manual prepared by UNODC in collaboration with NISD was also launched.

Wasnik said, “We need to move towards the areas where the youth is present and build awareness among them.” He said that we need to take vigorous steps to prevent the younger generation from falling prey to drugs. “Early prevention alone holds the key to having a drug free nation,” added the minister.

Azad in his speech said that till date he has never touched any of the abusive stuff but is well informed about its harmful health hazards. He said that though the addiction among people is not age or gender specific but it is mostly found among male members of the age group of twenty two, which is the most productive age. He also emphasised a need for a national drug abuse policy and getting the ministry involved in providing treatment.

At the event, Napoleon emphasised on having a community based intervention for motivational counseling, identification, treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts including the training of volunteers to build a committed cadre. The message of the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon was also read out by Christina Albertine, representative of the UN office of Drug and Crime (UNODC).

The function was concluded with cultural dance performances that were choreographed to bring out the dangerous consequences of drug abuse and exhorted the youth to refrain from it. The poetic words and huge puppets created a mesmerizing spell on the audience.