Shimla, May 19
Former Convenor-cum-Advisor of the Himachal Pradesh Drug De-Addiction Board, Om Prakash Sharma, on Tuesday accused the Congress government of failing to tackle the growing drug menace in the state and alleged that rules were ignored during the reconstitution of the board in 2025.
Addressing a press conference in Shimla, Sharma claimed that the state government took nearly two years after coming to power to reconstitute the Drug De-Addiction Board. He alleged that established norms were overlooked and a political individual was appointed as Convenor-cum-Advisor instead of experienced professionals.
Sharma said the government did not appear serious about eliminating drug abuse in the state. He stated that the issue could not be controlled through police action alone and required active public participation, awareness campaigns, and coordinated efforts at multiple levels.
He alleged that drugs were entering Himachal Pradesh from Punjab and Pakistan on a large scale and claimed that illegal substances were also being supplied through the dark web. Sharma said the protection of youth from addiction was the government’s responsibility, but adequate awareness and training programmes were not being conducted.
Criticizing the government’s anti-drug initiatives, Sharma said organizing rallies with schoolchildren alone would not solve the problem. He expressed concern over the increasing number of deaths among youths due to drug addiction and alleged that no serious efforts were being made to address the backward linkages of the narcotics network.
The former board convenor also highlighted manpower shortages in the police department. Referring to the government’s earlier announcement regarding the recruitment of 1,200 commandos, Sharma claimed that no visible progress had been made on the ground.
The Himachal Pradesh government has not yet responded to Sharma’s allegations.
