Substance abuse is prevalent among school, college-going students, says Nagaland govt. official

Our Correspondent
Kohima, June 26 (EMN): On the occasion of International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Commissioner and Secretary for Social Welfare, Sarah R Ritse stressed on the need to ‘improve’ the understanding of drug abuse and the threat it poses on various fronts.

The official was addressing a video conference organised by the department of Social Welfare in collaboration with Kripa Foundation, during a state-level observation of International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in Kohima on Friday.

According to Ritse, the government of India enacted the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, which has stringent provisions for control and regulation of operations relating to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. She stated that the challenges are enormous and desired objectives of the Act are yet to be fulfilled.

 “We must share the burden of highlighting the danger of substance abuse and its threat to erode the social fabric of our society,” she said.

Further, she maintained that awareness must be spread amongst the vulnerable sections and create a sense of responsibility among the masses.

Ritse felt that as Nagaland is located in a very vulnerable geographical location, having access to all sorts of drugs/substances trafficked from across domestic and international borders, requires a collective effort to fight substance abuse and illicit trafficking.

She raised concern saying that substance abuse is prevalent among school and college-going students.

The official urged all parents, families, institutions, faith-based organisations, communities, NGOs and government departments to collectively address the problem of substance abuse.

She also acknowledged the efforts of various NGOs and faith-based organisations for their relentless efforts in containing substance abuse in the state through various counselling, treatment and rehabilitation programmes.

“Results may not be to our satisfaction but we should not be discouraged. Let us encourage one another to fight till desired targets are achieved,” she stated.

Ritse shared that the state government has adopted the Nagaland State Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Policy, 2016. She said that the policy needs a relook and the matter would be taken up in due course of time to make it a more effective and achievable policy.

She informed that the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has included Mon, Kohima and Dimapur from the state in the Nasha Mukt Bharat campaign.

The director of Kripa Foundation, Abou Mere, said: “World Drug Day is an opportune occasion for us, as health activists and people who use drugs, to share our thoughts, dialogue, deliberate and advocate with the government and stakeholders on issues that are crucial to the lives of people who use drugs and alcohol.”

He reiterated that the day also provides an effective platform to propose necessary changes in policies and practices while maintaining that substance use and abuse is not just an individual’s problem but involves a wide spectrum of socio-economic, socio-political and human rights issue.

According to Mere, better knowledge would help develop and implement appropriate strategies and systems to ensure prevention, treatment and social reintegration. “This can only be achieved through the collective effort of the government and civil society to address demand and supply reduction while mitigating individual and societal risks through drug treatment-cum-rehabilitation and harm reduction,” he said.

He also made a clarion call that it is time to set aside harmful politics, ideology and prejudice; and to prioritise health and human rights over incarceration. “It is time to support, and not punish people who use drugs and other non-violent drug offenders,” he said.

Mere stated that Nagaland was one of the few states in India to develop its own drug policy. He however maintained that before the policy is implemented with budgetary, it needs to be revisited and adapt to the current situation. He said it would also need to consider the emerging policies and guidelines issued by various ministries.

Further, he appealed to the state government to review the State Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Policy, taking into account the findings from recent studies such as the national survey on extent and pattern of substance use in India, conducted by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE).

“The process should also incorporate updated policies issued by the MoSJE and the MoHFW as well and other scientific evidence programme for prevention and treatment. The policy should provide the much-needed guidance to address drugs and alcohol as public health and human rights issue, and provide an appropriate budget allocation for implementation,” he said.

Ritse also launched the ‘substance use helpline’: 9862160447, 9089273154.