New Delhi, Sep 8 (IANS) Officials of the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on Tuesday discussed the strategy to mobilise over 10 crore citizens through both physical and online participation to undertake the National Mass Pledge Against Drug Abuse later this month.
The pledge has been planned to mark the 6th anniversary of the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA), said an official statement.
As part of ongoing preparations, the third high-level coordination meeting chaired by Joint Secretary (Drug Prevention) Sandeep Rewaji Rathod discussed the plan and the comprehensive strategy to ensure the targeted participation.
Rathod briefed the participants about the importance of adopting ‘Whole of the Govt’ and ‘Whole of the Society’ approach to mobilise all stakeholders in pursuit of sensitising the common people about the dangers and challenges posed by substance abuse, the meeting said.
The meeting was also attended by Director, DoSJE (DP) Astik Kumar Pandey, Under Secretary Arun Kumar Karn, besides other officials of the Ministry.
The meeting discussed organising pledge ceremonies across all affiliated offices, educational institutions, autonomous bodies, PSUs and field formations under respective Ministries and Departments, including Railways, Defence, Civil Defence, Youth Affairs and Sports, School and Higher Education, Post, Police, CAPF, NCC, AYUSH, Rural Development, Health and Family Welfare, Revenue, besides social, voluntary, spiritual organisations and social influencers.
The Uniform Reporting Mechanism for submission of participation details and outreach was also discussed in the meeting.
The NMBA Pledge is an initiative to volunteer for reaching out to the victims of substance abuse.
The pledge aims to encourage responsible behaviour to instil a sense of responsibility among people to stay away from drugs, to promote and foster sense of Unity and Commitment for encouraging stakeholders to work together towards a common goal, the statement said.
The Pledge further seeks to empower youth to contribute actively to developing a drug-free society.
The meeting focused on the evolving spirit among citizens to act as volunteers by registering as Nasha Mukti Mitr through the Department’s official website: https://nashamukt.dosje.gov.in/nasha-mukti-mitr.
The Union Ministry launched the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA) on August 15, 2020, to combat drug demand in the country. Recognising the urgent need for collective action, the Ministry coordinates various initiatives including prevention, assessment, treatment, rehabilitation, aftercare, public information dissemination, and community awareness.
The Ministry is implementing a comprehensive and evidence-based strategy under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR).
The strategy is based on the findings of the first National Survey on the Extent and Pattern of Substance Use in India conducted by the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (NDDTC) at AIIMS, New Delhi.
Under NAPDDR, the Ministry provides financial assistance to State Governments, Union Territories, NGOs and Government hospitals for preventive education, awareness generation, counselling, treatment and rehabilitation.
As on date, the campaign has reached more than 34.42 crore citizens, including over 13.64 crore youth and 10.58 crore women, through nationwide awareness activities. More than 1.65 Lakh Nasha Mukti Mitras (NMM) have also joined the campaign to strengthen community participation.
–IANS
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