Chandigarh, July 10
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government on Sunday launched a drug screening drive for diagnosing substance abuse among inmates.
Under the pilot project, the Rupnagar District Jail has successfully conducted the screening of all 950 inmates. The screening was conducted in the presence of Special DGP Prisons Harpreet Sing Sidhu, IG (Prisons) Roop Kumar, DIG (Prisons) Surinder Singh and Jail Superintendent Kulwant Singh.
Some of the officers from other prisons across the state participated in the screening to get a first-hand experience in taking up the drive in their respective jails. The final results of the screening drive will be available within a day after which further action will be initiated.
The brainchild of Jails Minister Harjot Singh Bains, this statewide drug screening project aims to make prisons free from illegal narcotics, besides providing provisions to inmates, who are addicts, to undergo de-addiction treatment.
“It’s for the first time that such an extensive drive has been taken up to cover all inmates of a prison for drug screening in a day,” Bains said, adding that the process would be undertaken across all jails in the state.
He said this was another effort by the government to bring reforms in the state prisons. “This project will help in identifying inmates with substance use disorders, who are not yet undergoing treatment at the OOAT clinics/de-addiction facilities established within the prison system,” Bains added.
“To make the inmates undergo de-addiction treatment, FIRs will also be lodged under Section 27 of the NDPS Act in case any such person found consuming illegal narcotics,” the minister said.
He added the Jails Department would also request the investigation and prosecution authorities to enforce Section 64A of the NDPS Act. He further said this would provide inmates an opportunity to get themselves treated.
950 examined
- Under the pilot project, the Ropar District Jail has conducted the screening of all 950 inmates
- Some of the officers from other prisons participated in the screening to get a first-hand experience
- Jails Minister Harjot Singh Bains said this was another effort to bring reforms in prisons
A first: Drug screening drive in Punjab jails launched
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