Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee general (UPCC) secretary Anand Singh Rawat, who is also the State Chief Minister’s son, has stressed on people’s participation against the menace of drug abuse, currently rampant among youngsters in the State. “A people’s movement is an imperative to rightly take on the menace as more and more youngsters are falling prey to it.
The Government and the administration alone cannot achieve much. The reports we are receiving from all the districts of the state are grim enough to make us all sit up and find out ways to stamp it out, root and branch. The state government’s role is enormous. I have already served a memorandum to the CM,” he said while addressing a press conference in Dehradun on Saturday.
Rawat has appealed to the state government to issue instructions to the educational institutions to set up anti- drug mechanism by way of adequate publicity through various mediums, anti- drug committee and anti- drug squad, quick- response system, CCTV cameras at vital points, alarm bells, regular interaction and counseling, identification of drug abusers, prominence given to anti- drug abuse in the institutions’ prospectus booklets and brochures. “Besides, we feel the need of surprise inspection at hostels, canteens cum recreational room and the places where the students stay,” he said.
Invoking the direction of Supreme Court and University Grants Commission (UGC) on curbing ragging in the educational institutions of the country, he said that the state government should go on similar line to eradicate drug abuse. A committee comprising NCC and NSS students aside from others should be formed which would embark on a full-blown awareness campaign across the state,” the state Congress leader said.
Keeping in view the status of education hub that Dehradun and other cities of the state enjoy, Rawat said with the new academic session in the offing, the educational institutions should make it compulsory for the students and the parents to submit online anti-drug abuse undertakings each academic year.
“The students and the guardians may be made aware of the anti- drug helpline, anti drug website, anti drug monitoring agency and the like. This aside, the university/colleges should implement certain steps while taking the state government on board. The institutions should also take actions against those students who are caught indulging in the menace on the CCTV cameras,” he said.
Rawat demanded formation of Drug Prevention Board consisting of officers of various departments from the state government. “With the menace spreading its tentacles in the villages, de-addiction camps and public awareness campaigns should be taken to the villages across the state,” he said.
Asking for a consensus across the political spectrum, he said this is not time to indulge in sectarian politics, to hog limelight or credit. "This is a serious issue for all of us. We need to unite and raise voices as one man. We recently took up the issue with the members of BJP’s student affiliate. Several social organisations are also being involved. They are all for fighting the menace together,” he said.
The Congress leader also lauded Dehradun police for its campaign, "Nai Zindagi", to prevent young people from being lured by drugs. It should be mentioned here that Rawat had earlier advocated the age bar for liquor consumption be raised from 18 to 21 years.