Govt mulls to incorporate drug affects in school syllabus

“Drug menace is a serious problem for the country as the youth were falling easy prey creating a serious challenge for health agencies. The victims and criminals involved in NDPS cases encompass the entire range of social strata of the country. From the rich and famous to the poor are found to be involved in and affected by the drug menace,” he said.

The minister said, “About 7.3 crore people in India are involved in drug abuse. As many as 70 per cent have become heavy addicts, which is rather an alarming proportion. The number of those between age group of 18 are predominantly high. The problem has to be redressed by adopting measures like counselling and creating awareness.”

He asked for a holistic approach with the support of the society to root out drug abuse and talked about incorporating it as part of school syllabus to create awareness amongst students.

Nadda said that community-based intervention was the need of the hour to counter the ill effects and dangers of drug abuse. The government had sanctioned Rs 150 crore for mental illness programmes and the NDA government was considering to start advanced courses in all State and District hospitals for the very purpose.

“Our security agencies alone and stringent laws can’t reduce the gravity of drug marketing and smuggling in isolation,” said Nadda, adding that with concerted efforts of the society, awareness programmes will help in containing the drug business.