Bengaluru, Jul 22 (PTI) The Karnataka government has decided to take stringent measures to make the state free from narcotic substances, Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh said Tuesday.
Chairing the 6th State-level Narco Coordination Committee meeting held recently at the Vidhana Soudha, she directed all police stations and related departments across the state to be trained in the use of the MAP-Drugs app and to set district-specific targets for drug control.
She emphasised the need to update the official website to make drug-related information available in Kannada as well.
Rajneesh asked other districts to adopt the model being implemented in Belagavi.
The senior-most bureaucrat in the state also called for intensified checks at airports to curb drug smuggling and instructed that Customs officials be included in the committee.
In line with the directions of the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, she said the state must move decisively towards building a ‘drug-free Karnataka’.
She also directed officials to identify and act against unregistered pharmaceutical companies. All medical shops must mandatorily display a board stating “Sale without a doctor’s prescription is prohibited”.
She called for the development of improved Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the management of de-addiction centres and urged public awareness about these centres. Deputy Commissioners of the districts were instructed to visit at least one such centre every month and submit a report.
To protect students, she said drug-testing kits must be used in hostels, and action should be taken in positive cases.
Rajneesh also suggested forming district-level sub-committees on the lines of the Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF), and strengthening monitoring of the sale of red-listed drugs. PTI GMS ADB
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