Chandigarh, August 11, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Punjab Government has launched an extensive teacher awareness and capacity-building programme across 12 districts to strengthen efforts against drug abuse and promote mental wellbeing among students under its flagship ‘Yudh Nashean Virudh’ campaign.
The initiative aims to train more than 21,850 teachers with practical skills to identify early signs of mental health concerns, emotional distress and vulnerability to drug abuse among students, enabling timely intervention and support.
The programme was launched in Fazilka and Tarn Taran, where more than 800 teachers participated in workshops last week. More than 500 training batches will be conducted across the 12 districts in a phased manner beginning August 2026.
The districts covered under the programme are Fazilka, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Sri Muktsar Sahib, Faridkot, Mohali, Ropar, Kapurthala, Ludhiana and Patiala.
The initiative builds on earlier government efforts to sensitise school authorities on student wellbeing and substance abuse. In January this year, a training programme was conducted for principals and headmasters of senior secondary and high schools in nine districts, with a particular focus on border districts considered vulnerable to substance use.
A pilot teacher training programme was subsequently conducted in Amritsar, involving more than 2,800 teachers. Over 75 per cent of participants reported feeling inspired to contribute towards creating a healthier school environment.
The government said teachers are often among the first to notice changes in a student’s behaviour, but signs of distress can sometimes be mistaken for indiscipline. The new training programme seeks to help teachers distinguish such warning signs and respond appropriately, particularly amid concerns over anxiety, stress and substance use among adolescents.
Punjab Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir Singh said the programme would help teachers understand adolescent issues, mental health and emotional wellbeing while equipping them to identify early signs of distress and drug vulnerability.
“Every child who slips into the darkness of drugs is a child we could have reached earlier,” he said, adding that teachers would be trained to respond with compassion rather than punishment and connect vulnerable students with appropriate support.
The minister said the government wanted to ensure that no child in Punjab suffered in silence or faced stigma, and that students instead received care and support.
The initiative is being implemented through a cross-departmental effort led by the Directorate of State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), in coordination with the Department of Social Security and Women and Child Development.
The state’s Data Intelligence and Technical Support Unit (DITSU), which is leading a comprehensive response against substance use, will provide implementation support, develop training material and oversee quality assurance.
District-level nodal officers have been appointed to facilitate participation of senior secondary and high school teachers. The sessions are being conducted with support from the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan (NMBA) and the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR).
The one-day awareness-cum-capacity-building sessions will be delivered by expert resource persons using a psychosocial approach to substance-use prevention. Following the training, teachers will take a pledge to act as a “sentry” between their students and drugs and undertake activities with students in the weeks after the sessions.
The government said the programme’s reach and effectiveness would be assessed through participant feedback and a structured monitoring framework.
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