Chandigarh, March 31 -- Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria on Monday called for a united effort to eliminate drug abuse from the state, emphasizing the need to turn the fight against drugs into a mass movement.

Addressing the media at Punjab Raj Bhavan, he announced a six-day anti-drug padyatra from April 3 to April 8, covering Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts, to raise awareness and mobilize public participation in the cause.

"Many institutions were working separately against drug abuse and I thought of bringing them all together for a collective cause... I also decided to do a 'Paidal Yatra' with (Indian author and lawyer) Khushwant Singh... A lot of people in Punjab have been affected by drugs, especially youth... To address this, I...