DREAM meet discusses creation of SOP for running de-addiction centres
Shillong, Oct 8: Emboldening the state government’s resolve to ensure a drug-free Meghalaya, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma on Wednesday announced the government’s decision to establish detox and de-addiction centers in all district headquarters.
Following a review meeting of Drug Reduction, Elimination & Action Mission (DREAM), attended by various stakeholders and faith-based organisations, the chief minister also directed the state police to launch crackdown on hotspots of illegal drug peddling with the goal of rehabilitating even the last user.
Meanwhile, Health and Social Welfare departments have been instructed to set up minimum infrastructure for detox and de-addiction centres in each district headquarters.
“We are hopeful that in the next three-four months we should be able to set up detoxing as well as deaddiction centres fully functional in all the district headquarters,” Sangma told reporters on Wednesday.
These centres can be established in government hospitals, private institutions, or NGOs willing to collaborate with the government, he said.
The DREAM meeting also discussed the creation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for running these centres’ and the role of community participation in the process.
The government will ensure that the necessary manpower is trained to run these centers effectively, he said.
While announcing a police crackdown on all drug hotspots, the chief minister said the police will intensify regular surprise checks and CCTVs will be installed in these locations to monitor the situation.
Warning of strong action from police, he said, “This will be in a very strict and aggressive manner… Maybe we cannot go to all locations in one go, but we will start with the main areas where we feel that there has to be very strong action from the police,” he said.
The chief minister noted that although police had been very successful in catching the supply side, there are challenges in checking the retail part.
However, he said, this time police have been asked to deal with these incidents very firmly with the help of CCTVs installed in selected locations.
“Manpower will be increased in these locations, surprise checks will be made by police, excise, as well as the community,” Sangma added.
Sending a strong message about government’s seriousness on the matter, he said, “Government is very serious on this and you will see very aggressive actions in the coming days.”
When asked about the current state of rehabilitation centers, the Chief Minister said most district headquarters lack such facilities.
The government will also examine the regulation of costing and pricing of these centres to ensure they are accessible to those in need.
The Chief Minister further maintained that the government will not stop until the state is completely drug-free and all users are rehabilitated.
“We have to always look at it from an alarming point of view… I would like to see that there is no scope of any drug user in our state… all possibility of police stopping the supply must be done,” he said.
