Editorial: Invite Counsellors to Nuance Sikkim’s Ant-Drugs Campaign

Sikkim has a customised anti-drugs law which makes peddling in prescription drugs not covered by the Narcotic Drugs & Psychotropic Substances Act but abused commonly, and dangerously, in the State, a much more ‘criminal’ offence. Prescription drugs like Spasmoproxyvon and a range of cough syrups are extensively abused in Sikkim, but did not attract any severe enough penal punishment to deter their peddling. This loophole was addressed by the Sikkim Anti-Drugs Act of 2006 and the rules which were subsequently notified under it. Those who were expecting substance abuse to decrease with SADA have been expectedly let down. Although individuals caught with prescription drugs of abuse can now be tried and sent away for jail-terms, substance abuse has definitely not come down in Sikkim; not because the law is inadequate in itself, but because laws, no matter how strong, cannot combat a social challenge in the absence of complementing initiatives. This collaboration is normally expected of the civil society, but since there is none in Sikkim, it is time that the government approached the challenge of substance abuse afresh and catalysed the required involvements and interventions. One needs to bear in mind that SADA was necessitated by the peculiar nature of substance abuse in Sikkim and it is to the State Government’s credit that it recognised the situation and took the first step, but it has been some years since and a second step towards addressing addiction needs to be taken. SADA, in its present form, is deployed exclusively as a law and order device – by the cops on ‘drug busts’. In its original draft, the Act was more holistic in its approach and sought to make clear delineation between peddlers and addicts, between punishment and help. To achieve this, its implementation needs to be nuanced with compassion and wider understanding about addiction and the traumas of the drug-dependent. For this, a wider engagement is required to address the challenge. Peddling can remain a law and order issue, but individual addiction needs more considerate handling [as was also envisaged in the original Act], and this understanding can be gained only if more minds are invited to address the implementation and suggest required course-corrections in Sikkim’s efforts to contain addiction. A good place to begin will be in the reconstitution of the Sikkim Anti Drugs Authority Committee [established under the Act] to include those who are working with addicts and helping rehabilitate all they can reach out to. At present, this Committee includes only government officers, most of whom find themselves in the committee ex-officio and cannot be expected to make any substantial contributions because of their ignorance of the issue at hand and the many other responsibilities which compete for their attention. Those who have dedicated their lives to help repair the damage of addiction among others, if included in such a committee, will definitely table practical suggestions and effective interventions through SADA to give Sikkim a fighting chance at combating addiction among its young. Allowing such engagement will not be easy for the bureaucracy to recommend, but is a leap of faith which will land Sikkim in a better place...