Bathinda: In a parallel effort to the campaign against the drug abuse by the Punjab govt – Yudh Nashia Virudh, Ransih Kalan village in Moga district has been running its own anti-drug crusade for nearly two months, titled ‘Nasha Mukti da Abhiyan, Ransih Kalan Banu Punjab di Shan’.The aim is to sensitise all 452 families in the village, steering them away from any kind of intoxicants, ensuring no family member is involved with drugs. To achieve this, the village panchayat has introduced cash incentives and maintains vigilance to prevent the sale of intoxicants.The initiative is the brainchild of 34-year-old village sarpanch Preetinder Pal Singh, commonly known as Mintu Sarpanch. The panchayat announced a one-time cash incentive of Rs 11,000 for families that become drug-free and Rs 1,100 incentive as a healthy diet allowance for those overcoming addiction, in addition to providing free de-addiction treatment facilities. Nearly 29 families declared themselves drug-free and received cash incentives, with 13 making the declaration on Saturday. Additionally, 23 individuals are undergoing treatment. The 281 families from the village have been free from any kind of drugs or liquor for a long time.“We have ensured that no liquor vend is opened in the current financial year from April onwards. Chemists have been strictly instructed not to sell any kind of prohibited medicines, and general stores have been instructed not to sell cigarettes, tobacco, or energy drinks,” Preetinder Pal told TOI.He mentioned that 16 families in the village became drug-free in May, and 13 more had come forward now, receiving cash incentives from Moga deputy commissioner Sagar Seta and Nihal Singh Wala SDM Swati Tiwana.“With the efforts of the village panchayat, we are optimistic that the entire village will be drug-free soon,” said village resident Kuldeep Singh.Previously, many other initiatives were undertaken in the village, including setting up a water treatment plant, moving towards becoming a plastic-free village by offering various incentives for waste plastic, providing cash incentives to farmers for not burning crop residue, and promoting Punjab’s culture by opening a library.MSID:: 121693498 413 |
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