International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking

• 17 Jul 2019

The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has observed International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on 26^th June 2019.

• The Ministry highlighted the importance of the following approach in dealing with the menace of drug abuse:-
  
  • Universal Accessibility of Treatment.
  • Focus on Prevention, Treatment and Rehabilitation under National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction.
  • Targeted Intervention for High-Risk District & for Vulnerable Population in Closed Settings

National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction

• This Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has begun implementation of a National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR) for 2018-2025.
• The Plan aims at reduction of adverse consequences of drug abuse through a multi-pronged strategy involving education, de-addiction and rehabilitation of affected individuals and their families.
• It focuses on preventive education, awareness generation, identification, counselling, treatment and rehabilitation of drug-dependent persons and training and capacity building of the service providers through collaborative efforts of the Central and State Governments and Non-Governmental Organizations.

Government Intervention

• The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, addresses the prevention and rehabilitation aspect of substance use through the establishment of “rehabilitation centres” run by nongovernmental organizations.
• The Drug De-addiction Programme (DDAP) was initiated in 1988 under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, and was mandated with provision of treatment for substance use disorder (SUDs.)
• Globally, three broad approaches are followed to address the issue of drug use – “supply reduction”, “demand reduction” and “harm reduction.”
  
  • The “supply reduction” sector of the government works toward reducing the availability of illicit drugs through implementing the relevant drug laws and policies and is managed largely by the Narcotics Control Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India and a variety of other agencies in the central or state governments.
  • The “demand reduction” sector, on the other hand, deals with reducing the demand for drugs in the population through prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation.
    
    • The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE), Government of India, is the nodal ministry for demand reduction and has a “Scheme for Prevention of Alcoholism and Substance (Drugs) Abuse” in place since 1985–86.
  • “Harm reduction” in India is primarily seen as prevention of HIV among people who inject drugs and various strategies for this are implemented by the National AIDS Control Organization, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).