The 100-day Nasha Mukt J&K Abhiyan has emerged as one of the most significant public campaigns in Jammu and Kashmir, not merely because of the scale of its activities but because of the seriousness with which it has treated drug abuse as a combined challenge of public health, law enforcement, social security and youth protection. The figures are striking. More than 2.16 lakh awareness events, participation of over one crore people, hundreds of FIRs, arrests, seizures, rehabilitation interventions and identification of drug hotspots together show that the administration has moved beyond symbolic appeals and adopted a structured, multi-dimensional response to a crisis that has been silently damaging families, communities and the future of young people.
Drug abuse cannot be defeated through policing alone, just as it cannot be addressed only through counselling. It demands a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, where enforcement agencies dismantle supply chains, health institutions treat addiction, schools and colleges build awareness, families break silence, and communities refuse to normalise this menace. In this sense, the Nasha Mukt J&K Abhiyan has rightly combined awareness, prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, surveillance and strict legal action into one integrated framework. The massive public outreach under the campaign deserves special attention. Padyatras, school and college programmes, village-level campaigns, seminars, rallies, sports events, cultural programmes, and community interactions have helped carry the message against drugs into public spaces. This is important because drug addiction grows in silence, denial, and stigma. When students, teachers, parents, religious leaders, panchayat representatives, sportspersons, civil society members and officials speak together, the wall of silence begins to break. The campaign’s success will depend not only on how many events are held but also on whether these events change attitudes within homes, classrooms and neighbourhoods. The strengthening of counselling and rehabilitation support is equally vital. Addiction is not only a crime-linked issue. It is also a health and psychological crisis. The response through Tele-MANAS, addiction treatment facilities, rehabilitation centres and police-run counselling support reflects a welcome understanding that victims of addiction need treatment, not rejection. Thousands of patients approaching OPD and IPD services, along with counselling interventions and successful recoveries, indicate that institutional systems are gradually gaining public trust. This trust must be protected through confidentiality, compassion, trained staff and continued follow-up. At the same time, the enforcement figures show the hard face of the campaign, and rightly so. Registration of FIRs, arrests, apprehension of drug peddlers, identification of hotspots, seizure of narcotics, attachment of properties, cancellation of driving licences and vehicle registrations, and action against drug stores send a clear message that narcotics networks will face consequences. Drug trafficking is not an ordinary illegal trade. It destroys youth, destabilises families and, in sensitive regions, may also feed larger networks of crime, terror financing and social disruption. Therefore, firm action against peddlers, financiers and facilitators is necessary and justified. The attachment and demolition of properties linked with drug peddling also adds deterrence, provided every action is legally sound, evidence-based and transparent. Public confidence grows when citizens see that the law is not targeting the weak alone but is reaching those who profit from the destruction of society. The campaign must therefore continue to focus on the larger network, not only the small carriers and vulnerable addicts. Preventive vigilance through inspection of chemist shops, installation of CCTV cameras, checking of schools and hospitals, and intelligence-based identification of suspects and peddlers shows that the administration is widening its monitoring framework. However, vigilance must be balanced with public sensitivity. Schools must remain spaces of awareness and protection, not fear. Chemist regulation must be strict but fair. Rehabilitation must remain humane. Enforcement must remain firm but lawful.
The real test of the Nasha Mukt J&K Abhiyan will begin after the 100-day period ends. A campaign can create momentum, but only sustained institutional commitment can create lasting change. Jammu and Kashmir needs permanent anti-drug committees at the community level, regular counselling access, school-based awareness modules, sports and skill engagement for vulnerable youth, stronger parental counselling, strict monitoring of pharmaceutical misuse, and continuous action against organised drug networks. A drug-free Jammu and Kashmir cannot be achieved through statistics alone. It will be achieved when public participation becomes moral resistance and when every young life is treated as worth saving.