Jammu Tawi, March 5: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, today chaired a high level meeting to assess the preparations being made by the Information Department for a UT wide informational and educational campaign aimed at creating awareness about the hazards and prevention of drug abuse.
The Chief Secretary emphasized for training resource persons at the district level to ensure that a pool of trained individuals is kept available to reach every block and panchayat, fostering widespread awareness. He also directed for ensuring training of local officials in each block to act as counsellors, guiding the affected youth towards rehabilitation.
To enhance the campaign’s effectiveness, Dulloo instructed for covering every panchayat and higher educational institution across the UT with proper documentation of attendance and activities. He further advised the involvement of Deputy Commissioners in identifying key locations to ensure meaningful grassroots engagement of all the adult population there.
Highlighting the importance of clear communication, the Chief Secretary stressed the need for translating IEC (Information, Education, and Communication) materials into all local languages being spoken in the UT. He also urged the Information Department to leverage the reach of Radio and Doordarshan to disseminate educational content in far-off areas, ensuring maximum outreach and participation of the citizens.
To maintain the momentum, he directed the Department to publish a monthly newsletter featuring success stories, preventive measures and legal actions taken against the drug dealers to act as a deterrent. Additionally, he called for creation of a district-wise calendar of activities, widely publicised in advance, so that people in each village are informed about the campaign schedule and participating resource persons.
Present in the meeting were Principal Secretary, Home; Commissioner Secretary, Information & GAD; Commissioner Secretary, Social Welfare Department, Commissioner Secretary, H&UDD; Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir/Jammu; IGP, Kashmir/Jammu; IGP, Crime; Director, Information & PR; State Drug Controller and other concerned officers. Deputy Commissioners attended the meeting from their Offices through video conferencing.
