Friday, June 26, 2026 (Nokinketer News): June 26 is celebrated globally as World Drug Day, officially known as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, Nagaland observed the day at Capital Convention Centre, Kohima with a pledge to eliminate the menace of Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.

Advisor Social Welfare, Wangpang Konyak, as the special guest mentioned that this day is not merely an annual ritual day but, a day of collective introspection, a global wake-up call, and a solemn renewal of our shared pledge to protect our communities from the dual scourges of addiction and illegal narcotics.

Konyak, said the theme for this year”World Drug Problem: Persisting Issues, New Challenges, Innovative Responses”strikes at the very heart of modern reality. The old, predictable threats of traditional narcotics have mutated. We face a complex frontier of highly addictive synthetic drugs and sophisticated, technology-driven trafficking cartels that infiltrate our towns and villages right through the smartphones in our children’s hands. He said that, this day serves to remind us that drug abuse is not just an individual failure; it is a systemic threat to public health, economic productivity, and regional security.

He highlighted that the Central Government, through its flagship nationwide movement, the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA), has recognized that a punitive, law-and-order-only approach is insufficient. Under the vision of a Viksit Bharat, the focus has drastically shifted toward institutional demand reduction, grassroots counselling, data-driven mapping of vulnerable hot- spots, and dignified rehabilitation. In alignment with the Centre, the Nagaland State Government conducts massive awareness campaigns across the state through the District Level Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan (NMBA) Committee headed by Deputy Commissioners. Law enforcement agencies have done a commendable job in recent times in curbing the supply of illicit trafficking of drugs. The state government is also committed to strengthening mechanisms to enforce the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, tightening border monitoring, and increasing the number of De-addiction centres in the state, the Advisor added.

He shared that, our State due to the proximity to international border routes, it has long been a vulnerable transit corridor and an unfortunate destination for illicit trafficking. Generations of our brilliant youth-the very spine of our future-have been silently consumed by the trap of substance dependency.

Konyak said that in Nagaland, our community and faith-based organizations, especially the Church, can influence and play impactful roles, and therefore, he appealed the  Churches to look past the pulpit and build active, institutional, and compassionate interventions, by establishing  Church-led Counselling Units, De-stigmatize the Struggle, Youth-Centric Mentorship etc., he also call upon all other stakeholders- to our Mothers’ Associations, youth organizations, and Student Unions for their proactive collaboration to shield our youth from bad influences, create drug-free local zones, and encourage positive peer pressure through sports, music, and vocational skill-building. He also urged the teachers and educators, that our schools be safe havens from the menace of substance abuse and provide necessary intervention to safeguard our future generations.

He stressed that law enforcement agencies and state mechanisms alone cannot win this war.Therefore, the government, the church, civil society, and families must form an unbreakable, multi-layered shield with a firm commitment to protect our borders, clean up our streets, hold the hands of our struggling youth with love and zero judgment and pledge together to build an empowered youth and an addiction-free Nagaland.

Later, in the programme, Mima village council was awarded the Suposhit Gram Panchayat Abhiyaan award, which is a ₹1 Lakh incentive grant awarded to the top 1,000 performing Gram Panchayats across India that demonstrate sustained improvements in local nutrition and infrastructure metrics.

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