Kishtwar : Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar Pankaj Kumar Sharma Wednesday chaired a meeting of the District-Level Narco Coordination Centre (NCORD) to review the district’s response to drug abuse and deliberate on measures to strengthen anti-narcotics initiatives.
The meeting focused on reinforcing the institutional framework for drug de-addiction and reviewing progress under the Information, Education and Communication (IEC) campaign implemented as part of the NashaMukt Bharat Abhiyan.
At the outset, District Social Welfare Officer Kishtwar Tariq Parveaz Qazi presented the Action Taken Report (ATR) on the decisions taken during the previous NCORD meeting.
The Deputy Commissioner reviewed the preventive, rehabilitative and enforcement measures being undertaken by the departments concerned to curb drug abuse and illicit trafficking.
The Deputy Commissioner directed all Heads of Departments concerned to ensure the active participation of designated resource persons and officials in the IEC campaign under the NashaMukt Bharat Abhiyan every Monday, cautioning that any negligence or non-compliance would be viewed seriously.
The Excise and Taxation Department Kishtwar was directed to intensify enforcement against the illegal cultivation of cannabis and ensure destruction of all identified cannabis crops across the district in accordance with the prescribed legal provisions and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs); all SDMs and BDOs to convene meetings with Youth Clubs and MahilaNigrani Samitis to sensitise them and obtain their inputs for strengthening community participation; and the ADC Kishtwar to convene meetings with courier service operators and postal service providers and hold regular interactions with courier operators to ensure proper maintenance of records and prevent the transportation of unauthorised Schedule H drug consignments.
The CMO Kishtwar was directed to provide additional Rapid Drug Testing Kits to the departments concerned; the School Education Department to declare all remaining educational institutions as Tobacco-Free Educational Institutions in strict compliance with the TOFEI guidelines; all Sub-Divisional Magistrates and Tehsildars to expedite the declaration of Panchayats as “NashaMukt” in accordance with the prescribed SOPs, with due verification and active community participation; and all remaining Drawing and Disbursing Officers (DDOs) to furnish Drug-Free Office Certificates after obtaining duly certified self-declaration forms from all government employees.
The Deputy Commissioner called upon citizens and self-motivated volunteers to contribute towards making Kishtwar a drug-free district and to continuously monitor suspicious drug consignments, particularly those routed through courier networks.
Among those present were SSP Kishtwar Naresh Singh; ADC Kishtwar Pawan Kotwal; PO ICDS Rishi Kumar Sharma; ACR Idrees Lone; ACP/ACD Kishtwar Neeraj Sharma; all SDMs (virtually); DSWO Tariq Parveaz Qazi; EO Municipal Council Kishtwar Mirza Mumtaz Iqbal; Tehsildar Headquarters MohdRafie Naik; all Tehsildars (virtually); ALC Kishtwar MamtaSudershan; all BDOs (virtually); DYSSO Jaffer Haider Sheikh; CMO Dr Sanjay Bhat; CEO Kishtwar Sanjay Dogra; CAO Kishtwar Kushal Chandel; Drug Control Officer Kishtwar Muneesh Bhagat and Nodal Officer ATF Kishtwar Dr Hariss, besides officers from various departments concerned and representatives from various NGOs.
