SHILLONG:
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Thursday directed the Home (police) department and Social Welfare department to formulate action plan to tackle the growing menace of drug abuse in the state within 10 days.
Speaking to reporters, he said that the departments have been asked for a detailed plan and report on what action has been taken so far, their proposals and support they may need, adding the report has to be submitted within 10 days.
He said his direction came after several visits to various localities where he heard complaints about drug abuse.
“Wherever I go, the elders of the localities and the rangbah shnong and other members have always mentioned to me about the menace of drugs,” he said.
The chief minister said the police will also need more gadgets and advanced technology to detect drugs and stop their entry.
The Social Welfare department has been asked to detail the actions and programmes taken up by it, including the preventive and awareness aspects. It has been asked for a more detailed programme on how each department, organisation, headman and society can play a role to create awareness.
On the importance of the rehabilitation aspect of addressing drug abuse among the youth, Sangma said he has reviewed the matter and felt that there is need for more rehabilitation centres in areas where drug abuse is more rampant.
The government will finalise a plan of action after getting the reports, he said adding that he preferred that rehabilitation centres be set up in public-private partnership (PPP) mode, reasoning that the management would be better because NGOs have a sense of purpose and are involved in such work.
Sangma further urged interested NGOs to come forward in setting up more rehabilitation centres assuring that the government was ready to fully support them.
Whether the government would extend the Megha Health Insurance Scheme (MHIS) coverage for treatment of drug addiction keeping in mind the cost of treatment in privately-run institutions is high, especially for those coming from poor family background, the chief minister said that the point has been noted and the government will examine this aspect.
There are over 11,400 injecting drug users in Meghalaya as per the Report on the “Magnitude of Substance Use in India” which was released in February, 2019.
The survey was conducted by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in collaboration with the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (NDDTC), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.
The national survey report has also strongly recommended the need to conduct state-level surveys on the population of drug users.
The last survey report was conducted in 2009 by the North East India Drugs and Aids Care (NEIDAC) which stated the number of drug users in Meghalaya had gone up to 17,833, an increase of 33 times compared to 1999 which was only 556.