Chennai: The Tamil Nadu police is soon going to start anti-drug clubs in colleges falling under the Directorate of Collegiate Education. The state school education department has already permitted the police to do so.
The move comes in the wake of an increase in drug abuse among students in the city and rural areas of the district. Coimbatore police told IANS that last year, as many as 15 drug abuse cases among students were registered.
A senior officer with the Coimbatore city police told IANS, "A few days ago, the Coimbatore district administration announced that anti-drug clubs would be opened in educational institutions of the city. When we approached these institutions, they asked us to contact the Directorate of Collegiate Education."
V. Balakrishnan, Commissioner of Police, Coimbatore, who is spearheading the mission, said, "We have already written to the Directorate of Collegiate Education and Directorate of Technical education seeking permission to open anti-drug clubs in these institutions."
The police are planning to rope in volunteers from the NSS, NCC, Scouts, and Guides. The police from the local station will also join the clubs and actively campaign among the students against the pitfalls of drug abuse and the subsequent issues. They will also work closely with anti-drug club students to get an overview of the networks, if any, that are active on the campuses and outside and who were supplying drugs to the students.
Police officials told IANS that if the students are properly made aware of the issue, then the possibility of them falling into the trap of drug menace reduces.
Coimbatore police have also written to the Director of Drug Control to cancel the license of those pharmaceutical shops that were providing pain relievers to students without proper prescription. The police have directed the Drug control department to conduct periodical inspections of pharma shops to ensure that they are not selling pain relievers or sedatives to the students.
