Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday said that the State Government would frame an integrated drug prevention policy for the state.
“It would be named as “State Policy of Drug Prevention, Treatment, Management and Rehabilitation/Social/Integration Programme”, said the Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur while presiding over the first meeting of HP Nasha Nivaran Board held here.The Chief Minister said that better coordination between the Police, Media and the Nasha Nivaran Board is vital for curbing the menace of drug abuse in the state.The State Govt has decided to open six drug de-addiction centers in Himachal. The drug abuse also results in the increase in crime rate. The government is also contemplating to frame SOPs to regulate and control already functioning integrated Rehabilitation Centres for addicts and de-addiction centres to ensure better services to the needy in Himachal, he said.He said that official surveys would be conducted to know the extent and pattern of drug production, diversion of psychotropic substances including Precursors and the Magnitude of drug abuse in the state. A state-wise drug awareness campaign or sensitization programme would also be started in which elected representatives of Panchayati Raj Institutions, Urban Local Bodies, NCC Cadets, NSS volunteers and Mahila Mandals would be involved, he said.
The existing State Narcotics Control Cell of the State Police would be strengthened to effectively tackle this menace, he said.
The Chief Minister said that the State Government is determined to curb the problem of drug menace as it continues to be a serious social problem across the state and country. The major part of the anti-drug strategy of the State Government focuses on certain drugs originally derived from plant sources such as cannabis and opium. The State Government has taken stringent steps against cultivation and eradication of these drugs generating plants and campaign for the eradication of Cannabis is being carried out on all lands including Gram Panchayat, forest, and other government land, he added.
Highlighting initiatives taken by the government, Thakur further said that cannabis or opium eradication campaign is being implemented in the entire state in an effective manner. In order to intensify the cannabis or opium eradication campaign, the State Government has also deployed Sashatra Seema Bal (SSB) for addressing the issue in high altitude regions and provided them with modern equipment for cannabis or opium destruction.
Special drives to curb drug menace amongst the youth are being organized near schools and colleges from time to time under the Community Policing Scheme. Awareness campaigns are also being launched by Narcotic cell involving all Superintendents of Police and field units of CID to aware general public and educational institutes, he added.
The Chief Minister said that in the wake of rising drug menace in the state, the government has decided to introduce a chapter on ill-effects of drug abuse in the syllabus of government schools to sensitize the students.
He said that the State Government has also brought a Bill for making drug trafficking a non-bailable offence.
A large number of drug peddlers are from the neighboring states. It is on his initiative that steps were taken to chalk out a joint strategy to check drug menace in the region. A meeting was held at Panchkula in Haryana in which Chief Ministers of Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh had participated, he said.
Thakur said that all the Chief Ministers and representatives of other northern states agreed to share the information regarding drug trafficking. Another meeting was hosted by Punjab in which the Chief Minister of Rajasthan had also participated. This initiative proved a grand success in checking the menace, he added.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary Anil Khachi said that the executive committee of the Board would be constituted and regular meetings would be held for proper implementation of the recommendations of the Board.
He said that all the line departments would work with greater coordination for synchronization of various initiatives of the State Government to make Himachal Pradesh a ‘drug free state’.