Papum Pare Orders Regular Drug Testing of High-Risk Students, Rehab Centre Staff
The district NCORD committee has called for regular drug testing of high-risk students and rehabilitation-centre staff, along with coordinated monthly inspections around schools.
YUPIA- The Papum Pare district administration has stepped up measures to prevent substance abuse, calling for regular drug testing of students belonging to high-risk categories and staff working in rehabilitation centres, alongside stricter checks on shops operating in and around school premises.
The directives were issued during the monthly meeting of the District-Level NCORD (Narco-Coordination) Committee held at the DC Conference Hall in Yupia on Friday. The meeting reviewed measures relating to the prevention, detection, treatment and rehabilitation of substance abuse in the district.
Chairing the meeting, ADC Tame Yajum reviewed directives issued during previous meetings and the Action Taken Reports submitted by concerned departments.
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Yajum emphasised the need for regular drug testing of rehabilitation-centre staff and students in high-risk categories in schools and colleges. She also called for regular checking of shops and gumtis in and around school premises to prevent the sale of tobacco products in these areas.
To strengthen enforcement, the Trade & Development, Tax & Excise, Narcotics and Health departments have been directed to coordinate and conduct joint monthly inspections in and around school premises. The objective is to enforce relevant provisions and restrict children’s and young people’s access to tobacco and other harmful substances.
The district health authorities said drug testing is already being undertaken as part of the 30-Day Integrated Health Programme being conducted in villages. According to DMO Papum Pare Dr Reena Ronya, the programme will continue until March 31, 2027, with the District Health Society conducting drug tests and compiling reports for further monitoring and necessary action.
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The meeting also focused on improving monitoring of rehabilitation centres. Dr Ronya asked the centres to submit monthly information on admissions, discharges and the number of inmates housed in their facilities. The reporting mechanism is intended to give the district administration and health authorities an updated assessment of rehabilitation activities and help them provide appropriate support.
Mental-health support was another component of the discussion. Health authorities called for greater awareness and use of Tele-MANAS, the tele-mental health counselling service, among inmates of rehabilitation centres. The service’s privacy and confidentiality provisions were highlighted as factors that could encourage people to seek professional counselling.
Representing the rehabilitation sector, Hope Rehabilitation Centre Managing Director Tadar Hania raised difficulties faced by rehabilitation centres in obtaining health cards and mental-health documentation under the applicable Mental Healthcare framework. He requested consideration of an appropriate board or competent mechanism to facilitate issuance of mental-health cards and related certification to rehabilitation centres.
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The meeting was attended by DySP Phassang Simi, members of the Anti-Narcotics Coordination Team (ANCoT) and representatives of various rehabilitation centres in Papum Pare district.
Taken together, the measures discussed point to a multi-layered approach to substance-abuse prevention in Papum Pare—combining early detection through testing, tighter monitoring around educational institutions, reporting by rehabilitation centres and expanded access to mental-health support.
