34 centres established with support of MoSJE
Dire need to further increase awareness, counseling
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Feb 12: In a positive development, the number of drug and alcohol addicts approaching de-addiction centres in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir is increasing during the past five years. However, awareness and counselling need to be further increased so that more such persons start receiving treatment in order to come out of the shackles of the menace.
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As per the official data available with EXCELSIOR, there is one Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCA) in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir while as number of Outreach and Drop In Centres (ODIC) is three. Similarly, there are two Community Based Peer Led Intervention (CPLI), six District De-Addiction Centres (DDACs), one State Level Coordinating Agency (SLCA) and 21 Addition Treatment Facility.
All these centres are being supported by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment of the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment for the people suffering from alcohol and drug-addiction.
As per the data, the number of drug and alcohol addicts obtaining benefits from these centres is increasing during the past five years. During 2019-20, only 247 persons were treated in these centres but the number increased to 1509 during 2020-21. Again in the year 2021-22, the number increased to 5372 and in 2022-23, the number reached 17018. During 2023-24, highest ever 35639 addicts availed the benefits of these centres.
“No doubt this is a positive development but authorities concerned should not be complacent keeping in view the deep-rooted menace which is constantly spoiling the lives of large number of people particularly youngsters”, observers said, adding “counseling services are required to be increased for the families of the persons suffering from alcohol and drug addiction so that more and more addicts express willingness to visit these centres for the treatment”.
It is pertinent to mention here that Department of Social Justice and Empowerment of the Union Ministry has developed Navchetna (a new consciousness on life skills and drug education for school children) teaching training module, which is aimed at increasing awareness against drugs and promoting education on the life skills among students in schools and drug education information session for parents and family.
“Government of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir should make use of this teacher training module so as to achieve the objectives behind the same”, observers stressed, adding “while law enforcement agencies are required to tighten noose around the suppliers of the drugs, the other agencies should gear up for awareness generation and counselling”.
The Integrated Rehabilitation Centre for Addicts (IRCA) provides composite/ integrated services for the rehabilitation of the substance dependent person and is responsible for preventive education and awareness generation which target groups (vulnerable and at risk).
Similarly, Outreach and Drop-In Centre (ODIC) is a community-based facility for substance users and caters to individuals, particularly youth who use various substances and those who have the least access to resources. ODIC is client-focused with an ultimate goal to prevent youth in the community from falling prey to substance use and also to help the current users to become sober by taking treatment.
The objectives of a Community-Based Peer-Led Intervention typically include assessing substance use within a community, implementing early prevention education through trained peer educators, raising awareness about the risks of substance use, providing referrals and linkages to counseling and treatment services for identified individuals, and empowering community members to take an active role in promoting positive health behaviours.
The main focus of the DDAC is early prevention, education, demand reduction, identification, treatment and rehabilitation of vulnerable individuals or individuals affected by substance use disorders. The purpose of Addiction Treatment Facility is not only to provide de-addiction services and rehabilitation services to the patients but also to conduct research and provide training to medical doctors in the area of drug de-addiction.
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