NEW DELHI, Dec. 16 -- The government has reiterated its comprehensive approach towards addressing drug abuse/drug trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, specially focusing on synthetic drugs, it was informed in the Lok Sabha.
In a written response, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Nityanand Rai, noted: "The National Policy on Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, designed by the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, in 2012, has a holistic approach towards ensuring control over the use of such substances for medical and scientific purposes while enforcing strict control over their diversion, trafficking, and abuse.
The policy has a well-thought-out approach and includes awareness generation, treatment, rehabilitation, and social reintegration through government and a network of non-governmental organisations implemented by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The policy also includes conducting national surveys on a regular basis to monitor the trends of abuse and provide evidence-based interventions accordingly."
In a move aimed at reducing the manufacture and smuggling of synthetic drugs, the government has listed 18 additional precursor chemicals under Schedule B and Schedule C of the Regulation of Controlled Substances Order on January 23, 2025, which brings the number of controlled substances to 45.
The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has provided a list of companies that have been allocated Unique Registration Numbers of precursor chemicals to the states, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, and Intelligence Bureau.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.