Expressing concern over the rise in the number of drug abuse cases in the city, Principal District and Sessions Judge Kadloor Sathyanarayacharya on Thursday said there was a lack of system to bring the victims to the mainstream.
Speaking at the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, and a public awareness jatha programme, organised by the Akhila Karnataka Janajagruti Vedike here, Mr. Sathyanarayanacharya said the city, which has a good literacy level, was slowly inching towards becoming the top place drug abuse and drug trafficking.
Mr. Sathyanarayanacharya, who is also the special judge for Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, said every night FIRs are being registered for drug abuse and drug trafficking, and the accused are being brought before him in his home office.
“I interact with them for few minutes. Most of them are students of B.Com, Engineering, and MBA courses. Somehow, they are getting trapped in drugs,” he said.
“The family members of most of them are not aware of what their children are involved in. Educational institutions, in order to avoid stigma, remain silent about the drug abuse outside their campuses,” he said.
Mangalore University Vice-Chancellor P.S. Yadapadithaya said that heads of all 210 colleges affiliated to the university have been directed to appoint a full-time counsellor, who will be available to students two times a week. “We are serious about this and we will carry out surprise checks. If any college is found wanting, then the affiliation of that institution will be cancelled.”
Mr. Yadapadithaya said the university has also asked all institutions to have a profile of shops in the area and initiate action if they notice any illegal activity.
Chairman of Alva’s Education Foundation Mohan Alva said educational institutions in the city, which was providing quality education to their students, were facing a great challenge in building good mind among students.
“These youngsters are facing the onslaught from internet, cinema and social media. We should work together in building a good mind,” he said.
