Chandigarh, August 27: Punjab has strengthened its ongoing ‘Yudh Nashean Virudh’ campaign by embedding comprehensive harm-reduction interventions into its public health framework to combat substance use disorder. The state currently operates 547 Outpatient Opioid Assisted Treatment (OOAT) clinics under the health department, alongside 47 Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST) centres managed by the Punjab State AIDS Control Society to provide structured medical care and rehabilitation services.
The health infrastructure expansion focuses on reducing blood-borne disease transmission and preventing fatal overdoses among vulnerable populations. The strategy aligns with World Health Organization guidelines that emphasize treating risk factors associated with substance abuse while creating avenues for recovery.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh maintained that social acceptance and medical care remain essential to addressing addiction effectively across the state.
“We must approach victims with empathy and give them treatment and skills for dignified reintegration,” stated Health Minister Dr Balbir Singh, asserting that reducing social stigma helps patients remain consistent with prescribed clinical care.
Primary treatment across the OOAT network involves prescribing Buprenorphine, either alone or combined with Naloxone, as a safer clinical substitute managed under psychiatric supervision. To widen options for long-term clinical care, the state operates six dedicated methadone maintenance clinics in Faridkot, Ludhiana, Patiala, Gurdaspur, Mohali, and Jalandhar, with six additional facilities currently being set up to double capacity.
National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre Professor Dr. Atul Ambekar declared that long-term medical substitution remains the recommended primary strategy for opioid dependence, adding that taking daily prescribed medication to manage a chronic health condition does not equate to active addiction. Medical teams across all centers complement treatment with counseling on health risks and safe practices.
