Student peer educators in project against drug abuse felicitated at Pondicherry University.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The student peer educators involved in a project to make the district drug-free were felicitated at Pondicherry University after they completed a phase of community-led interventions.
According to a press note from the University, students from 10 higher educational institutions in Puducherry were trained as peer educators under the ‘Towards a Drug Free Puducherry District’ project undertaken jointly by the Department of Social Work, Pondicherry University and Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE), Government of India under Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan.
Gurmeet Singh, Vice-Chancellor of Pondicherry University, B.B. Mohanty, Dean, School of Social Sciences and International Studies and K. Anbu, Head (in-charge), Department of Social Work, Pondicherry University, felicitated the students.
The team was presented certificates and medals in recognition of their work and achievements in their communities. R. Nalini, principal investigator provided an overview of the initiatives undertaken since the launch of the project in April 2022.
The peer educators have sensitised faculty and students from higher educational institutions against substance abuse and alcoholism in the district. They have mobilised women, youth, and at-risk groups in local communities to address the substance use-related issues faced by community members and to aid them in accessing psychosocial support services.
The peer-led interventions in the phase of the project undertaken between December 2022 and April 2023, included awareness programmes, focus-group discussions with women, youth and self-help group (SHG) members, health awareness sessions, sports and rangoli competitions, and household KAP (knowledge, attitude, and practice) surveys. The awareness efforts had focused on the villages of Periyakalapet, Solainagar, Keezhparikalpattu, Kottaimedu, Melthirukanchi, Sivaranthagam, and Kezhoor, the press note said.