Chandigarh, Feb. 3 -- The government-aided drug de-addiction and rehabilitation centre in Sector 18 is functioning in violation of rules and contractual obligations, denying patients basic facilities such as subsidised meals, open space and structured rehabilitation, even as the UT administration continues to renew its licence without corrective action. The 30-bed facility, housed in the Government Press Building in Sector 18 and run by NGO Society for Promotion of Youth and Masses (SPYM) under an MoU with the UT administration, has for years flouted food norms, charged patients far above prescribed rates and operated from premises unsuitable for rehabilitation, inspection reports and official records show. One of the most glaring violations relates to meals. As per the MoU, food for patients was to be supplied from the kitchen of Government Multi-Specialty Hospital (GMSH), Sector 16, at a cost of Rs.700 per patient per month. Instead, for the past 14 years since the centre's establishment, no meals have been supplied by GMSH-16, and the NGO has been charging patients Rs.6,500 per month for food. The MoU also mandated that the operator bear food costs for destitute and street-based patients to ensure access for economically weaker sections. No such concessions are being provided, effectively making the facility unaffordable for poor patients. Mukesh, project manager at SPYM, which runs the centre, said the hospital cited transport issues in supplying meals. "Though the GMSH-16 kitchen supplies food to civil hospitals in Manimajra and Sector 22, meals were never provided to the Sector 18 centre," he said. Inspection reports submitted to the Punjab and Haryana high court have repeatedly flagged serious deficiencies at the centre, including lack of open space, inadequate ventilation and absence of recreational facilities - all mandatory under Chandigarh's Substance Use Disorder Treatment, Counselling and Rehabilitation Centre Rules, 2014. Despite these findings, no strict action has been taken. The Sector 18 centre operates from a press building with no outdoor space, poor ventilation and no scope for occupational or recreational therapy, which the 2014 rules list as essential components of rehabilitation. The UT health department has maintained that no alternative site is available to relocate the facility. The centre was set up in 2011 following directions of the Punjab and Haryana high court, which had ordered the establishment of drug de-addiction and rehabilitation facilities to ensure affordable, regulated care. Despite repeated non-compliance with MoU terms and regulatory norms, the UT administration has continued to renew SPYM's licence. No fresh tender has been floated in 14 years, and inspection committees have repeatedly certified the centre as compliant. In 2024, the NGO was granted another three-year extension to operate the facility till 2027. The apathy continues even as substance use cases in Chandigarh rise. According to data from GMCH, Sector 32, as many as 2,440 patients visited the drug de-addiction clinic in 2022, including 780 new cases. In 2023, the number rose to over 3,100, with 737 new cases. In 2024, 900 new patients were reported, taking the total to over 4,000. Patients included those dependent on alcohol, opioids, cannabis, nicotine and volatile solvents. Despite the growing burden, Chandigarh has limited inpatient facilities. GMCH-32 has no dedicated de-addiction centre and only eight beds earmarked in its psychiatry ward. PGIMER runs a 20-bed centre with a long waiting list. The health department's own drug de-addiction centre at GMSH-16 has remained closed for the past four years, leaving the Sector 18 facility as the only aided inpatient centre in the city. The Union ministry of social justice and empowerment had promised Rs.15.3 lakh in funding for the aided centre, but the funds were never released. Under Section 71 of the NDPS Act, the government is obligated to establish centres for identification, treatment, rehabilitation and social reintegration of persons with substance use disorders. On the issue of meals, UT director health services Dr Suman said the matter had "now come to notice" and would be addressed in the next tender. Under the Rogi Kalyan Samiti, the health department has proposed reopening the drug de-addiction centre at GMSH-16, though no concrete timeline has been announced. Mukesh said the NGO had repeatedly written to the administration seeking open space for the centre and clarity on funding. "We have not received any central funding since the beginning," he said....