Chennai: To create drug- and tobacco-free campuses, the Tamil Nadu govt will undertake a slew of measures, including conducting orientation programmes, screening students, obtaining a self-affidavit from students against drug abuse and encouraging students to file anonymous complaints against the sale or use of drugs within the campuses.Chief minister Joseph Vijay on Tuesday administered a mass pledge for ‘Drug-Free Tamil Nadu’ and launched a campaign to create drug- and tobacco-free campuses.“All the freshers will be sensitised to the physical and psychological consequences of substance abuse during the orientation. Students will also be told about the punitive sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act) and disciplinary actions by the institutions, counselling and treatment,” the state govt said.“Educational institutions will have anti-drug clubs and the club members will undergo special training to become peer ambassadors. These students will help identify sudden behavioural changes among the students. Those students will also undergo further testing and treatment,” it added.Students and citizens can also report illegal substance sales near the campuses. They can file anonymous complaints against drug trafficking through the Drug-Free TN mobile app.The state govt has declared the 100m surroundings of the college and school campuses a no-tobacco zone.“Tamil Nadu govt has allotted ₹264 crore to establish 65 anti-drug force units across the state. The units will have 2,079 police personnel headed by ADGP. The state also allocated ₹70 crore to rehabilitate the persons addicted to drugs,” home secretary K Manivasan said at the event.CM Vijay also witnessed the destruction of 8,800kg of seized drugs and 64,000kg of banned tobacco products at four locations, including Chengalpet, Tirunelveli, Coimbatore and Thanjavur.As many as 2,000 students took the pledge in person and more than 50,000 students in 37 districts participated in the event through video conferencing.Along with them, the parents of students, workers, women’s self-help groups, doctors, those undergoing treatment at drug rehabilitation centres, IT employees and others took the pledge. Chief minister also distributed medals to 15 police officials and anti-drug clubs for their contribution in curbing drugs.Chief secretary M Saikumar, higher education seceretary Dheeraj Kumar, school education secretary B Chandra Mohan and DGP Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal and others participated in the event.
