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29 Mar 2024, Edition - 3181, Friday

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Coimbatore

Illegal deaddiction centres boom on rising drug abuse

Samuel D Jairaj

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The recent shutdown of illegal deaddiction centres in Trichy and other places brings to focus the big business that has been running across the State.

Tamil Nadu Health Minister C Vijayabaskar in a statement said, “Twenty four deaddiction centres in Tamil Nadu functioning without proper permission have been issued notice by the government.”

Growing menace of drug abuse and alcoholism have made such centres thrive. Those with dependency on substances like alcohol, prescription drugs and street drugs such as marijuana, cocaine and heroin are brought for treatment to deaddiction centres. etc. Director of Help Rehabilitation Centre in Coimbatore M Joseph told The Covai Post that the basic purpose of such centres was to help a particular person free from the dependency on certain drugs or substances and to avoid psychological, legal, social and physical consequences which may be caused due to this addiction.”

Deaddiction centres usually treat substance-addicted for 40 days or up to three months. A proper deaddiction centre must get a licence from the Institute of Mental Health at Kilpauk in Chennai. At the centre, the ultimate motive is to transform the particular person into a new human being free and relieve him of the dependency on particular drugs or substances.

“In a deaddiction centre, we have a psychiatrist, a psychologist, a psychology social worker, a caretaker and a physiotherapist. It is the collective work of these people that enables to transform a person. The patient is taught yoga and meditation in the morning and is to indulge in some group activities later after breakfast. Psychological activities are also given to them based on their capabilities. Counseling for family members is also carried out.

“The success rate of the transformation of the patients is almost 40-50 per cent. A person will be able to come out of the substance addiction fully, only if he is willing.to Unless the person is willing, it would be impossible to transform him,” says MP Rajesh from the HCA Foundation in Coimbatore.

Many individuals have started their own centers without proper training or recognition. The impact of these illegal centers are drastic and ruins of the lives of the persons admitted. “The practice of running illegal centres without needed facilities, proper training and knowledge about deaddiction therapy, is widely taking place with money being the only motive. These kind of fake institutions force people to lose their hope in transforming their lives by reaching the de- addiction centers. This results in the patient growing even more dependent on drugs or substances.

“These untrained people are those who indulge in activities like beating and putting patients to chains,” says Dr Fernandez, psychologist at Vazhikatti Mental Health Centre and Research Institute.

Authorities are taking various steps to curb such illegal institutions and restore the faith in the minds of people trying to find a way to transform their lives. But they cannot be blamed for losing faith in deaddiction centres as there is substantial rise in illegal ones.

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