DC Kishtwar reviews drug control measures at District-Level NCORD Meet

KISHTWAR: The District-Level Narco Coordination Centre (NCORD) meeting was today convened under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Sharma to review the ongoing measures to combat drug abuse, strengthen the de-addiction framework, and the progress of the Information, Education & Communication (IEC) campaign under the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan.

District Social Welfare Officer Tariq Parvez Qazi apprised the meeting about the Action Taken Report on the decisions of the previous meeting. The Deputy Commissioner conducted a comprehensive review of the prevailing drug abuse scenario in the district and sought detailed inputs regarding vulnerable areas, affected age groups and identified hotspots.

He also assessed the preventive and enforcement actions being  taken by the stakeholder departments. Emphasizing the crucial role of community participation, the DC called for active involvement of all stakeholders in the IEC Campaign 2.0. He stressed on wider outreach and effective public awareness on drug abuse prevention by proactively utilizing the services of the resource persons nominated by the line departments.  The Heads of Departments were asked to ensure proactive role of nominated resource persons. “Non-compliance or absenteeism will be viewed seriously” the DC cautioned.

Expressing dissatisfaction over the progress reported by the Excise and Taxation Department, the DC directed the department to station enforcement team at Paddar to curb the sale of illicit liquor. He also directed all Sub-Registrars to share lists of properties belonging to persons involved in NDPS cases to initiate attachment proceedings.

The  NRLM authorities were directed to furnish block-wise list of Self Help Groups (SHGs) for their capacity building . The DC also ordered declaration of the educational institutions as tobacco-free zones, strictly in accordance with the prescribed SOPs and testing protocols.

Further, the DC directed for random testing of drivers by the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD) and joint initiation of wall paintings by the Municipal Council, Kishtwar, and the Excise and Taxation Department to spread awareness on drug abuse. He further directed to display toll-free helpline numbers at prominent locations.

Stress was laid on intensifying awareness drives by organizing sensitization camps and Nukkad Nataks across all 13 wards of the Municipal Council with active involvement of youth, parents and civil society members.

The Chair took serious note of the absence of the Drug Inspector and issued a strict warning to ensure his presence in all future meetings. The meeting was attended by SSP Naresh Singh; ACR Idrees Lone; ACD Manoj Kumar; DSWO Tariq Parvez Qazi; ALC Mamta Sudarshan; CMO Dr. Yudhvir Singh Kotwal along with other officers and officials of the stakeholder departments.