Kathmandu, June 25:

Experts today stressed on the need for increased coordination among government and civil society organisations for better implementation of National Drugs Policy 2006.

The policy focusses on controlling the supply of narcotic drugs and their consumption, Chandeshwor Acharya, under-secretary at the Home Ministry underscored the need for treatment of drug addicts by keeping them in proper rehabilitation centres with proper care and protection.

"There should be collaboration, partnership and resource mobilisation from the civil society including the drug abusers for effective implementation of the plans and policies aimed at controlling drug abuse," he said.

There was lack of coordination between the civil society and the government regarding several aspects related to drug abuse but there were no loopholes in the policies," Acharya said.

He also stressed the need for extending anti-drug abuse campaigns at the national level for a sustainable solution to the problem.

The Central Bureau of Statistics has estimated that there are some 1.5 million drug users in Nepal of which 61.4 per cent are injecting drug users.

Ananda Pun, president of Recovering Nepal, said there should be strong coordination among the civil society, drug users and the government to adopt a radical approach against the problem of drug abuse.

He said the drug users were highly affected and marginalised group, which faces social discrimination as well.

Bishnu Sharma of Richmond Fellowship said medicines were not the only solution to the problem of drug abuse.

“Drug abusers should be treated with love and care while treating them at the

rehabilitation centres,” Sharma said.

Dr Soraj Prasad Ojha, drug psychiatrist at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, said the personal problem of drug abuse had now become the problem of the family and of the nation as a whole.