Central Government Drafts Action Plan To Address Problem Of Drug, Substance Abuse; Includes Social Media Campaign

After dumping a long-pending draft policy, a five-year action plan has been drafted by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment to tackle the problem of substance and drug abuse in the country, Deccan Herald has reported.

The move comes after the ministry withdrew the draft National Drug Demand Reduction Policy from the Cabinet. It had been pending for more than five-and-half years and was redrafted twice during the period.

“Instead of the policy, the ministry has now prepared a national action plan," a government official was quoted in the report as saying.

The National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR) 2018-23, seeks to employ a multi-pronged strategy which involves de-addiction, education and rehabilitation of affected individuals and their families.

Awareness generation, preventive education, counselling, treatment and rehabilitation of drug-dependent people are the focus of the plan, besides training and capacity-building of service providers through the collaborative efforts of the Centre, state and NGOs.

"The objective of the NAPDDR is to create awareness and educate people about the ill-effects of drugs abuse on the individual, family, workplace and the society at large in order to integrate them back into society,” said the official.

Under the NAPDDR, there are plans in progress to generate awareness through social media, engagement of celebrities and digital and online media. Furthermore, the national toll-free line will also be strengthened for drug prevention.

The plan also calls for persuading principals, vice-chancellors, and directors of educational institutions to ensure that the sale of drugs is curtailed in and around campuses.