Drug-free schools: CBSE to train teachers, counsellors for nation-wide awareness drive

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in order to restrict substance use among students. The agreement, signed in CBSE offices at New Delhi, aims at establishing schools as a priority ground for prevention, awareness, and intervention.

The agreement lays down an overall framework of cooperation. Quarterly agendas of awareness, teacher and counsellor training sessions, e-learning courses, and community outreach have been put on the table.

MoU SETS FRAMEWORK FOR AWARENESS DRIVES

A pilot will be initiated in 100 CBSE schools, with a hub-and-spoke model to cover more numbers.

Anurag Garg, Director General, NCB, and Rahul Singh, Chairperson, CBSE, signed the MoU.

Speaking to the assembly, Anurag Garg highlighted the school's frontline position. He went on to say that anti-drug measures cannot be left entirely to police activity. Schools must become a part of the solution.

CBSE Chairperson Rahul Singh stressed the board's role in keeping students safe.

He said the board is ready to arm schools with facilities and data so prevention becomes not just a policy but a practice.

CBSE Secretary Himanshu Gupta spoke of providing schools with safe and secure zones.

He also linked the project with the Tele-MANAS, the government mental health care program, and said early intervention is as important as prevention.

In fact, what the MOU says is that schools would not merely rely on classroom teaching.

They will also be dynamic centers of drug-prevention activities, where teachers, parents, and students come together. Counselling service will be launched as a direct line of support.

AWARENESS PROGRAMMES

This was followed by a grand awareness programme conducted by over 500 principals, counsellors, and wellness teachers of CBSE schools. Two sessions framed the discussion.

Food Corporation of India Chairman and Managing Director Ashutosh Agnihotri addressed the issue of leadership in schools.

His argument was simple: schools should be guiding children not only academically, but in resisting societal problems.

Dr Anees C Deputy Director, NCB, spoke on the subject "Refuse the First Dose, Secure the Future." He demonstrated the chain of dangers of consuming drugs early and how schools, peers, and families can individually and collectively step in to sever it.

The programme was wound up with a question-answer session. Principals and counsellors asked questions, presented ground realities, and sought steps to enhance school-level interventions.

The collaboration with CBSE–NCB is a shift in strategy. It defines substance abuse as much of an educational and social problem as a law-and-order problem. 

By focusing on schools, the two organizations are betting on early awareness, preventive actions, and community support.

Should the pilot succeed, the pilot may establish how the education sector handles one of the most vital challenges facing young people today.