100 districts to be declared 'Drug Sensitised' by Aug 2022

New Delhi, Dec 30 (IANS) The Centre plans to declare 100 districts as 'Drug Sensitised Districts' by August next year as a part of its campaign to free the country from substance abuse.

In a statement, the Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry said that to tackle the issue of substance abuse and a vision to make India drug-free, the "Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan" (NMBA) was launched on August 15, 2020 in 272 districts identified as most vulnerable in terms of usage of drugs in the country.

"These vulnerable districts were identified on the basis of findings from the Comprehensive National Survey and the inputs provided by the Narcotics Control Bureau. The Abhiyaan is a three-pronged attack combining the supply curb by the Narcotics Control Bureau, outreach and awareness and demand reduction effort by Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry, and treatment through Health Ministry," it said.

Since the launch, a wide range of activities have been conducted throughout the country that have fostered participation from all quarters of society and stakeholders.

"Till now through the various activities undertaken for the Abhiyaan, 1.4 crore people have been reached out so far in the identified districts. More than 45 lakh youth have actively participated in the activities of the Abhiyaan," the ministry said.

Across the country till now, over 30 lakh students have been reached with events, competitions and sessions organised in over 55,000 educational institutions such as schools and colleges.

"Master volunteers have been selected and trained to lead the Abhiyaan activities in the 272 identified districts. A strong network of over 8,000 master volunteers are actively participating in the Abhiyaan," the ministry said.

A Mobile Application for the drive was also launched by the Ministry to gather and collect the data and the information of the activities that are happening on-ground.

"To celebrate Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Ministry has planned to declare 100 districts as 'Drug Sensitised Districts' from August 2021 to August 2022 as per defined parameters," the ministry added.