Aizawl, Sep 27 (IANS) As part of the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA), Mizoram has conducted 360 anti-drug awareness activities across all 11 districts in three phases, reaching 1,48,805 people, officials said on Sunday.
Mizoram and neighbouring Manipur have emerged as major drug-trafficking corridors in the Northeast because of their long and porous international borders with Myanmar and their proximity to the Golden Triangle, one of the world’s major illicit narcotics-producing regions.
Six districts of Mizoram and five districts of Manipur share around 910 km of unfenced international border with Myanmar.
During a review meeting in Aizawl, Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment’s Secretary Sudhansh Pant commended Mizoram’s efforts in drug demand reduction, noting that the state had ranked first in India in July this year. He urged the state to sustain its efforts and emphasised the importance of prevention, awareness, treatment, rehabilitation and supply reduction.
Pant also appreciated Mizoram’s three-tier Drug Demand Reduction Committee mechanism and initiatives such as the Narcotics Anonymous booklet, Standard Operating Procedure and accreditation of Drug Rehabilitation Centres, and encouraged the State to share these initiatives with the Ministry for possible replication at the national level.
According to an official of the Social Welfare Department of Mizoram government, State, District and Block-level Drug Demand Reduction Committees have been established for coordination and monitoring. Under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR), Mizoram has 10 Integrated Rehabilitation Centres for Addicts, District De-addiction Centres in six districts, two Outreach and Drop-in Centres, five District Treatment Facilities, and Addiction Treatment Facilities at Aizawl and Champhai District Hospitals. The State’s Hulhliap initiative, launched in June 2025 for short-term care, recovery and rehabilitation of persons affected by substance abuse, has so far admitted 2,255 persons and conducted 20-day detoxification, medical treatment and psycho-spiritual counselling camps.
A follow-up Narcotics Anonymous Awareness Programme, conducted jointly with the Presbyterian Church and Mizoram Drug Users Forum, has also reached church leaders, youth, families and recovering drug users.
In the area of senior citizens, the State Senior Citizens Home provides residential care, healthcare and psychosocial support. Under the State Action Plan for Senior Citizens (SAPSrC), 613 free cataract surgeries, 475 health screenings and 181 dementia screenings were conducted during 2025-26.
Another round of activities is being implemented during 2026-27. Under Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana (AVYAY), geriatric caregiver training and other programmes for senior citizens are also being implemented.
–IANS
sc/uk
