Legislators, Communities Must Unite to Fight Drug Abuse: Sakina Itoo | Kashmir Life

SRINAGAR: Minister for Health and Medical Education, Sakeena Itoo, on Friday underlined the collective responsibility of legislators, senior citizens, intellectuals, community members and religious leaders in combating drug abuse across the Union Territory.

Replying to a clubbed question in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, the Minister detailed initiatives by the Health Department, including mandatory CCTV installation and computerized billing at medical shops, training of village-level counsellors, and CCTV coverage in and around schools and colleges. Teachers are also being trained to identify and counsel students showing early signs of addiction.

The Minister said Drug De-addiction services are being strengthened under the Health and Medical Education Department and the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan. Addiction Treatment Facilities (ATFs) are functional in all districts of Kashmir Division and nine districts of Jammu Division, providing both inpatient (IPD) and outpatient (OPD) services.

In Kashmir Division, ATFs operate in SKIMS, GMC Bemina Srinagar, GMC Anantnag, GMC Baramulla, GMC Handwara, and district hospitals in Kulgam, Shopian, Pulwama, Budgam, Ganderbal, and Bandipora. In Jammu Division, ATFs are functional in GMC Doda, GMC Jammu, GMC Kathua, GMC AH Rajouri, GMC AH Udhampur, and district hospitals in Kishtwar, Poonch, Ramban, Reasi, and Samba (OPD basis). Psychiatrists are available in all GMCs, and OPD services are being extended across districts.

The Minister added that efforts are underway to improve counselling and treatment, particularly in rural and vulnerable areas, by strengthening OPD-based counselling, improving access to essential medicines, and enhancing follow-up and outreach programmes. Awareness campaigns are regularly conducted via field functionaries and print media to encourage victims to seek treatment.

She said 32,517 patients have been registered in ATFs across Jammu and Kashmir, with 16,759 in Kashmir Division and 15,758 in Jammu Division. A Drug De-addiction and Rehabilitation Centre at Village Bajwani, Tral, Pulwama, remains operational and caters to patients from the district, while the District Hospital Samba facility, established in February 2024 under the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre (AIIMS, New Delhi), provides OPD-based psychiatric, counselling, and addiction treatment services free of cost.