SDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being | SDG 16: Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions
Institutions: Government of Himachal Pradesh | Narcotics Control Bureau | Ministry of Home Affairs
The Himachal Pradesh Government is launching the Anti-Chitta Volunteer Scheme (ACVS) to strengthen its campaign against drug abuse. Announced by Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu during Independence Day celebrations, the scheme will recruit over 1,000 volunteers across the state.
These Anti-Chitta Volunteers will support police efforts by raising awareness of the dangers of drugs, reporting suspicious activities confidentially, and engaging in school and community outreach through rallies, street plays, awareness drives, and social media campaigns. They will also connect affected individuals and families with counselling and rehabilitation centres. Volunteers will receive a modest honorarium for their services and undergo a two-day structured training programme covering the NDPS Act, basic police procedures, and community engagement methods.
For safety, volunteers will not be involved in direct field identification of offenders, and police will ensure strict confidentiality of their identities. Since 2023, the state has escalated its anti-drug campaign by enforcing the PIT-NDPS Act, seizing drug mafia properties worth βΉ42 crore, and making chitta drug testing mandatory in police recruitment.
What is Chitta and the NDPS Act?
Chitta is a slang term used in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab for heroin or synthetic narcotics, highly addictive substances often mixed with other drugs.
The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 is Indiaβs main anti-drug law. It regulates production, possession, sale, and use of narcotics, prescribes strict punishments, and also provides for treatment and rehabilitation of addicts. Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) oversees the implementation of NDPS Act.
The scheme institutionalises community-police partnerships against drugs, embedding citizens directly into prevention, awareness, and intelligence frameworks. This strengthens ground-level capacity, enhances rehabilitation linkages, and reflects a shift from purely enforcement-driven approaches to community-based governance of public health and safety.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders:
What risks, such as confidentiality breaches, retaliation, or politicisation, might limit the success of this volunteer-driven approach?
Follow the full news here: http://himachalpr.gov.in/OnePressRelease.aspx?Language=1&ID=42448