A 'Toll Free National Drug Helpline' was launched here on the occasion of 'International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking'.
NEW DELHI: A 'Toll Free National Drug Helpline' was launched on Tuesday here on the occasion of 'International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking'.
Inaugurating the facility, Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Meira Kumar said it would come handy to all, particularly to the youth to combat the menace of drugs.
She said her Ministry was undertaking a national survey through National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) to gather authentic data on the nature and extent of the problem of drugs in the country.
Initially, NSSO will be conducting pilot study in selected districts all over the country, which will be followed by National Household Survey. This survey would provide the much needed information for a holistic planning for drug abuse prevention, said Ms Kumar.
She said the Ministry had also set up a National Centre for Drug Abuse Prevention in the National Institute of Social Defence for capacity building of service providing NGOs.
National Institute of Social Defence (NISD) has built partnerships with Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan; the largest youth network in the country and field communicators of the Directorate of Field Publicity.
Called for addressing the issue of drugs frontally and comprehensively, she said the Ministry was supporting over 350 de-addiction centres and over 40 counseling centres all over the country, and capacity of 200 centres have been augmented with support from NACO to effectively deal with drug-driven HIV and AIDS.
However, she added, a complex societal problem that drug abuse has become today, requires a larger partnership.
The Minister further said a serious concern was the linkage of drug abuse with HIV and AIDS.
''Injecting drugs is a very efficient mode of HIV transmission. Though it does not contribute more than 2.4 per cent to the pandemic pool, South Asia has the largest injection drug users (IDU) population in absolute numbers.
Instances of injecting drug use are reported to be on rise in India too,'' she pointed out.
She told the gathering that this year, the theme chosen to mark the occasion is 'Do drugs control your life? Your life. Your community. No place for drugs'.
The Ministry has also taken up a national level awareness programme under the slogan 'I decide, won't take drugs'.
The campaign basically targets young people, explaining the consequences of drug abuse and how the individual is responsible ultimately for his drug behaviour. It also deals with stigma and discrimination issues and why it is important to openly talk about drugs, she said.
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