Govt plans drug tests of students, teachers, staff

ISLAMABAD, Oct 4 (APP):Minister for Narcotics Control and SAFRON Shehryar Khan Afridi Friday said the government would conduct drug tests of students to ensure drug free Pakistan under the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

To achieve the task, he said, the government was consulting with private and public sector educational institutions to ensure drug screening of students, faculty members and staff.

The decision to this affect was taken in a meeting held here between the Minister and the owners of private and elite schools.

“Educators were chosen for educating new generations. After mother’s laps, schools were the institutions to educate, groom and train the children to transform into productive citizens,” he said.

Afridi stressed the schools owners to employ best practices of drugs control in educational institutions.

“We have developed a database of international drugs and terrorism criminals using over 250 sources.

We have to take effective, proactive initiatives to choke down drugs trade,” he added.

The minister said that the private schools should invest in developing rehabilitation centers for treatment of addicts of their schools under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

“We will discourage practice of expelling students falling to drugs. ANF has developed its own rehabilitation centres in Islamabad, Karachi and Sukkur and ANF uses its own resources.

We were framing a new law under which drugs rehabilitation centres in government hospitals too,” the minister added.

Read More: Pakistan renews its commitment to working towards ‘Drug Free World’