Psychiatrist Help To Drug Addicts Will Reduce Trafficking, Punjab & Haryana HC Directs States To Appoint Psychiatrists At De-Addiction Centres

The Punjab & Haryana High Court has said in order to ensure the well being of drug addicts, the Chief Secretaries of Punjab and Haryana, and advisor to UT Chandigarh must forthwith appoint psychiatrists at all the de-addiction centres on a regular basis.

Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice Sudeepti Sharma opined that, "purveying of psychiatric medicine to drug addicts would ultimately result in reduction in demand side, with a consequent well benefit upon reduction in supply side rather taking place, whereupon, there would be decrease in drug trafficking."

These observations were made while perusing the compliance report filed by the Punjab, Haryana and UT Chandigarh on detailed directions issued by the Court to curb drug menace.

The Court had sought inputs from Himachal Pradesh DIG Soumya Sambasivan, to assist the Court on the issue. 

The DIG referring to Mental Healthcare Act 2017, submitted that, "that there are a lot of studies to show that there is strong correlation between drug abuse (substance abuse) and mental health... Even otherwise de- addiction treatment has to be done from dual perspective i.e from the perspective of de-addiction and from the perspective of mental health because drug de-addiction is more about winning against the mental faculties than a disease."

 Considering the suggestion, the Court said in terms Section 2 of the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 prime importance has been given to psychiatrist.

"Consequently, when it also becomes underlined therein that, mental health illness thus arising from drug addiction, rather requires administration of psychiatric medicine, but by a psychiatrist endowed with the professional competence, as declared in the hereinabove extracted clause (y) of Section 2 of the Act of 2017," added the bench.

The Court also observed that the States and UT administration must comply with the direction to deploy drug detection kits in jails which will check on drug trafficking in jails.

Speaking for the bench Justice Thakur said, the directions issued have wider impact and "the entire country is facing a threat to its socio economic fabric through massive and rampant consumption of drugs arising from rampant drug trafficking."

Consequently it directed the Registrar to circulate a copy of the order, to all the Chief Secretaries and, "also to all the Directors General of Police in all the federal States in the Union of India, so that this order may become considered to be complied with."

Title: BHUPENDER SINGH V/S STATE OF HARYANA

Mr. Ankur Mittal, Addl. A.G., Haryana with Mr. P.P. Chahar, Sr. D.A.G., Haryana.

Mr. Sartaj Singh Gill, Sr. D.A.G., Punjab.

Mr. Manish Bansal, Public Prosecutor, U.T. Chandigarh.

Click here to read/download the order