Media sensitised on demand reduction of drugs
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, April 08 2023: A media awareness workshop on "Demand Reduction of Drugs as part of War on Drugs" was held today at Hotel Sangai Continental here.

The workshop was jointly organised by Social Welfare Department and the Editors' Guild Manipur (EGM) .

Speaking as chief guest at the inaugural session of the workshop, Social Welfare Minister Heikham Dingo said that the issue of drugs cannot be tackled or resolved by the Government alone.

All the NGOs, CSOs, Government agencies and the general public must join hands to address the issue of drugs effectively and the media have a big role in the war on drugs, Dingo said.

Drugs affect the entire society directly or indirectly and it impedes development and damages the State's economy, he said.

The situation demands immediate intervention of all stakeholders otherwise it will only grow worse and go out of hand, he warned.

Media sensitised on demand reduction of drugs

Taking serious note of this grim situation, the Chief Minister launched the War on Drugs, Dingo said.

EGM president Khom-dram Khogendra remarked that seizure of contraband drugs became a daily affair since the last couple of years and it included consignments worth several crores.

It is a matter of utter shame before other States, he said.

The EGM organised the workshop in collaboration with the Social Welfare Department with the hope that it would help in understanding and tackling the situation to some extent, Khogendra said.

He said that the recommendations adopted at the workshop would be forwar-ded to the Government.

Speaking during the technical session, Social Welfare Director Ng Uttam pointed out that Manipur shares a 398 Kms long porous border with Myanmar.

Manipur is also quite close to the Golden Triangle, now known as the Dead Triangle which is the largest centre for manufacturing opium and other intoxicating drugs.

On account of Manipur's proximity to the Golden Triangle, the State is often used as a transit point for illicit drug trafficking and this is one major reason for easy availability of drugs in the State, Uttam said.

Meanwhile, large scale poppy cultivation and establishment of drug manufac- turing units have been detected within the State.

The beautiful social fabric and social discipline of Manipur have been torn apart as a result of rampant abuse of intoxicating drugs, he remarked.

He said that no survey has been carried out in the State till date on substance abuse and as such, there is no data on the matter.

Nonetheless, there is a portion on Manipur in the 'Magnitude of Substance Use in India 2019', a report published by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Police and other law enforcing agencies are res- ponsible for the task of supply reduction of drugs while Social Welfare Departments takes the responsibility of demand reduction.

Health Department takes the responsibility of reducing the harmful effects of drugs, Uttam said.

The major thrust of the State at present is supply reduction of drugs but it will never be enough.

In tandem with supply reduction, it is equally important to reduce demand as well as their harmful effects, he said.

Talking about several measures taken up by the Government, the Social Welfare Director said that the Guidelines for Setting Up of Treatment and Rehabilitation of Users for Social Transformation (TRUST) Centres, 2020 have been framed.

While around 90 de-addiction centres have submitted applications, the State has opened a TRUST Centre at Sunusiphai.

Moreover, plans are afoot to open another TRUST Centre for transgenders on PPP model at Khurai, he said.

RIMS, Head of Department, Psychiatry, Prof (Dr) RK Lenin claimed that use of intoxicating substances is a part of life.

"Total abstinence is an ideal goal but we cannot even move closer to total abstinence, forget about achieving it," Dr Lenin said.

Criminalisation of substance users is a mistake on the part of the society.

Use of substances should be seen as a health problem and the users must be provided appropriate treatment, he said.

He asserted that early detection and early treatment is the best option for social transformation of substance users.

Family and relationship problems created by substance use are more harmful than the health problems it creates, Dr Lenin said.

SASO general secretary RK Tiken presented a brief account of his experience as an office bearer of a community based organisation during the last 30 years.

He said that sometimes the people or the Government machinery saw them in the wrong light when they took up certain measures for the welfare of substance users.

It was rather disappointing that substance users were often subjected to extreme harassment, stigmatisation and segregation, Tiken said.

The issue of drugs must be tackled collectively by NGOs, CSOs and the public with the help of the Government and there is a big role of media in these collective efforts, he added.