War on drugs: STF to start ‘buddy project’ in Punjab

TARNTARAN: The anti-drug special task force (STF), with the help of health and education department of Punjab, has made a plan to start a ‘buddy project’ to make students aware about the ill effects of drugs in the district.

The STF chief and additional director general of police (ADGP) Harpreet Singh Sidhu visited Pandoori Gola village, 10km from the district headquarters, on Tuesday, to inaugurate a threeday training programme for school teachers and principals in this regard.

Sidhu said that the STF is functioning on three pronged strategies, which include enforcement of drug-related laws, de-addiction and rehabilitation of victims of drug abuse and prevention of drug abuse. “Education of young students regarding drug abuse is a major part of the prevention strategy,” he said.

He added that the STF has designed the ‘buddy project,’ under which, all government and private schools and colleges of the state will be included for making students aware about prevention of drug abuse. “Initially, the project will be implemented in Tarn Taran, to check the results and the project will soon be implemented in the entire state,” he said.

He added that the project will involve principals, teachers, students and their parents. “The project is based on mutual interest and positive construction for a healthy and productive school environment,” he said. The buddy project will be led by class teachers and will be supervised by the principals and district education officers (DEOs), he said.

Teachers will be trained by a special team constituted by the state government, consisting of STF, psychology department officials, Punjabi University (Patiala) members and education department officials. Deputy commissioner (DC) Pardeep Kumar Sabharwal said that the three-day training will be attended by over 400 teachers and principals of 592 schools.