Centre tells SC content related to drug abuse included in school textbooks

New Delhi [India], December 14 (ANI): The Centre has apprised the Supreme Court that content related to drug abuse and ill effects of substances such as alcohol, heroin and cocaine have been included in the school textbook prescribed by NCERT and a study is going to explore the possibilities of using drones to destroy illicit cultivation of opium and cannabis by the NCB.

"NCB is also under active consultation with Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N) to explore the use of new technologies such as satellite imagery, use of drones etc. to counter the problem of illicit crop cultivation. A separate study group to explore the possibilities of using drones to destroy illicit cultivation of Opium and Cannabis is also being formed by NCB," the government said.

Centre has told the Supreme Court that contents related to drug abuse and the ill effects of substances such as alcohol, heroin and cocaine have been included in the school textbook.

These facts were mentioned by the Ministry of Education in an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court in compliance with its earlier order.

In the affidavit, the ministry said that NCERT has been addressing concerns relating to drug abuse and in its capacity-building programmes, especially focusing on adolescent-related concerns under the School Health Programme of Ayushman Bharat The Training and Resource Material on Health and Wellness of School going Children has a theme on "Prevention and Management of Substance Misuse" that deals with preventive ways of addressing this concern.

"Also, the contents related to drug abuse are included in Chapter 4 of the Textbook in Psychology for Class XI (Human) Development) and in Chapter 4 of the Textbook in Psychology for Class XII (Psychological Disorders). Also, ill-effects of frequently abused substances such as alcohol, heroin and cocaine have been discussed in the section on Substance-related and addictive disorders," the ministry said in the affidavit.

The ministry apprised the court that Mental health issues among individuals have been a rising concern. The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 highlights this concern and states the urgent need for ensuring "not only cognitive development but also building character & creating holistic and well-rounded individuals equipped with key 21st-century skills".

NCERT has been offering professional training in Guidance and Counselling to support and strengthen the capacity of the counsellors and teachers so that they can extend help to individuals to deal with everyday life stressors such as changes in lifestyle, divorced/single parents, anger, violence, drug abuse, child abuse, HIV/AIDS, suicide, crime, etc, the govt said.

Manodarpan is an initiative of the Ministry of Education (MoE) as part of "Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan which aims to provide psychosocial support to students, teachers and families for mental health and emotional well-being during the times of COVID-19 and beyond. It was launched on July 21, 2020.

Under the aegis of the School Health Programme of Ayushman Bharat, NCERT has developed a comprehensive package titled Training and Resource Material: Health and Wellness of School- going Children. A specific module has been included on "Emotional Well-being and Mental Health, which has activities related to the mental health and well-being of students and teachers. Online training of Nodal Officers from the States and UTS was organised to facilitate effective implementation and percolating of skill sets related to mental health and well-being of students, the govt said.

Meanwhile, another affidavit was filed by the Narcotics Control Bureau, which highlighted the Central Government has empowered several other agencies to control the menace of drug trafficking, which include the Department of Border Management (BM Division) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB)under the aegis of the Ministry of Home Affairs; Ministry of Shipping; the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) and the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC). Apart from these, the National Investigating Agency (NIA) is empowered to investigate into narco-terror cases, the affidavit said.

NCB also apprised the top court that the steps being undertaken by different agencies to control the menace of illicit trafficking of drugs, there are various efforts being made by state authorities, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment towards control of drug abuse, drug deaddiction and rehabilitation of drug addicts.

NCB also mentioned setting up a task force on Darknet and Crypto-Currency with the help of other intelligence agencies under the Multi-Agency Center a task force in this regard was constituted by the government on February 4 2022 with a focus on monitoring all platforms facilitating Narco-trafficking, sharing of inputs on drug trafficking amongst Agencies/MAC members, interception of drug networks, continuous capturing of trends, modus operandi & nodes with regular database updation and review of related rules & laws.

NCB is also under active consultation with Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N) to explore the use of new technologies such as satellite imagery, use of drones etc. to counter the problem of illicit crop cultivation. A separate study group to explore the possibilities of using drones to destroy illicit cultivation of Opium and Cannabis is also being formed by NCB.

The matter was today heard by a bench led by Justice KM Joseph, which directed to place the matter before the Chief Justice of India.

The public interest litigation was preferred by Bachpan Bachao Andolan focusing upon the alarming increase in the use of drugs and alcohol among children in India. The petition has been instituted in the public interest for enforcing the fundamental rights of children

particularly those suffering from and involved in substance use and abuse.

The court remarked that it is a very serious matter.

Earlier the top court has issued various directions to the government observing that the issues pertaining to alcohol, tobacco and drug abuse in the school curriculum has to be adequately emphasized. (ANI)